Bay Middleton

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William George "Bay" Middleton (born April 16, 1846 in Glasgow , Scotland , † April 9, 1892 in Edge Hill / Kineton ) was an English equestrian and gentleman rider.

Bay Middleton

Life

Cpt. William George Middleton was the son of George Middleton the Elder. Ä. and his wife, Mary Margaret Hamilton. Little is known about his childhood. Middleton was an excellent equestrian. He won many races and devoted most of his life to horses. He also played excellent cricket and worked as a jockey . His riding skills and sporting achievements were highly respected beyond the country of Great Britain .

Middleton was a red-haired, rather withdrawn man who was most comfortable with people of his social class. Probably because of his reddish-brown hair - which shimmered like a bay - he also got his nickname "Bay", which he kept all his life

Bay Middleton completed a military career. He served in the rank of Rittmeister (Captain) in the 12th Royal Cavalry Regiment (12th Royal Lancers). From 1865 his unit was stationed in Cahir .

Middleton first became known internationally through his contacts with Empress Elisabeth , whose pilot he became. Elisabeth first traveled to England in 1874 at the invitation of her sister, Ex-Queen Marie of Naples . There she met John Poyntz 5th Earl of Spencer know. It was at this meeting that she apparently met Bay Middleton for the first time, who was Lord Spencer's stable master and horse breeder, but she took no further notice of him.

After extensive preparations and extensive training, Elisabeth decided in 1876 to take part in an English-style par force hunt . After the riding preparations over the past two years, she felt safe enough to keep up with the best. Elisabeth took up quarters in Easton Newton . As a master she was assigned to Bay Middleton, who was nine years younger and hard of hearing. It didn't help to moan and refuse, Middleton had to take on this task. At that time Middleton was considered the best rider in England. When they first met, Middleton showed no interest in Elisabeth; he thought she was an arrogant, bored woman from the high aristocracy. Although he had a ready-made opinion about Elisabeth, he did not forget his excellent manners. Elisabeth, in turn, was impressed that she met Middleton at eye level, maintained his rough manners towards her and - in contrast to most of her contemporaries - was not at all submissive. The unfriendly remarks of Middleton about her person came to Elisabeth's ears, but she showed no anger. His self-confident, rude manner had made an impact on Elisabeth and earned him respect.

The ice was broken when he saw Elisabeth in the saddle. He, the experienced rider, recognized her as an ingenious female rider, whose skills went far beyond the usual. He particularly appreciated her posture in the side saddle , which made riding difficult. When Empress Elisabeth showed her skills, the captain was deeply impressed and full of praise. From then on, a sincere friendship developed between Middleton and Elisabeth. Empress Elisabeth allowed herself to be ordered around by Bay. He helped her on horseback or pulled her out of swamp and ditch when she fell. He drove her to peak performance and wasn't someone who told her "to stop" or "don't overdo it". Elisabeth loved these challenges and accepted them every day. With Bay's help, she became the best rider in the world. Something unique and unprecedented for a lady of her class.

In the summer of 1876, Middleton visited Elisabeth's Gödöllö at the invitation of Elisabeth . There he also met Franz Joseph . The Kaiser didn't know what to do with Bay, quite apart from the fact that he didn't understand English well and Middleton understood neither German nor Hungarian. But Elizabeth's Hungarian riding friends were particularly jealous of Middleton. Middleton soon got into a rather aggressive rivalry, especially with Elisabeth's first rider in Hungary, Count Niki Esterhazy . Because in Hungary Esterhazy was the master and first of the hunt.

Elisabeth trusted Middleton blindly. Bay bought her horses, tended them and had them ridden. Bay was invited again to Hungary at Gödöllö Castle for Christmas. A circumstance that should cause serious problems. The Hungarian magnates were offended because a Scottish “barbarian”, as they called him, was put in front of their noses.

In 1875, Middleton became engaged to Charlotte Baird, a girl from a wealthy landowning family. However, he kept putting off the wedding until Charlotte, plagued by jealousy, could no longer be held off. After long years of engagement, Charlotte finally wanted to get married and did not think about continuing to tolerate Bay's devotion to the Empress. And so he married Charlotte on October 25, 1882. The marriage resulted in a daughter Violet Georgina (* 1886). Between the years 1776 and 1882 it was rumored again and again that Middleton and Elisabeth had entered into a love affair. But Elisabeth didn't notice any of this. She only had eyes for her sport, her horses and her fun. From today's perspective and according to the latest research, an affair between the Empress and Middleton seems extremely unlikely; almost all of her numerous biographers rule out such a relationship.

Rumors of affairs were mainly fueled by Elisabeth's sister, Marie of Naples, as she was a little in love with Middleton herself and would have liked to ride out with him, but was always rejected by Middleton. During a visit to England, Crown Prince Rudolf learned from his aunt, Ex-Queen Marie of Naples, about the gossip about an alleged "relationship" between his mother and Middleton. He was cleared up of the lies by Maria Festetics . When Elisabeth found out about this, there was a violent argument between the two sisters, which could not be settled for life.

In February 1882 Elizabeth left the British Isles never to return to horseback riding. She suddenly gave up riding, all of her horses were sold and the stud was given up. But Middleton maintained a secret correspondence with the Empress for a while. The two also met a few times. A secret meeting is said to have taken place in Amsterdam . Elisabeth's daughter Marie Valerie also mentions a visit from Middleton to Gödöllö in her diary on March 20, 1888.

Bay Middleton is said to have had a love affair with Lady Henrietta Blanche Ogilvy (* 1852, † 1925) in the 1880s. The daughter Clementine (born April 1, 1885, † December 12, 1977), who later became the wife of Winston Churchill , is said to have emerged from this relationship .

In the following years Middleton continued his equestrian sport. In 1892 he took part in the "Midland Sportsman's Cup", a heavy horse race in Kineton, which was organized by the 18th Lord Willoughby de Broke (* 1844, † 1902). He fell so hard at the “Parliamentary steeplechase ” that he broke his neck and died. A memorial stone was set up at the site of the accident and can still be seen today.

The funeral took place in the presence of numerous prominent guests in the parish church of Haselbech / Northamptonshire . His coffin, which was covered with the Union Jack , was laid to rest with military honors of his regiment and his regimental comrades.

After his death, his (jealous) widow had all correspondence with Empress Elisabeth destroyed. Only a few mementos remained, which Bay Middleton received from the Empress out of gratitude.

literature

Web links

Remarks

  1. ↑ Kineton is a parish on the River Dene in southeast Warwickshire, England .
  2. ↑ a b In equestrian sport, the “master” (also known as the “pilot”) is the rider who determines what happens during the par force hunt (one of the most difficult and demanding types of hunting).
  3. ↑ Elisabeth prepared herself thoroughly for the hunt in England. She trained the obstacle race regularly in Gödöllö and in French Sassetôt .
  4. ↑ Elisabeth rode her whole life exclusively in the side saddle.
  5. ↑ Lady Henrietta Blanche Oglivy was married to Col. Henry Hozier, who was allegedly unable to father. The daughter Clementine was recognized by him as a legitimate child.
  6. ↑ According to other reports, the father of Clementine Algernon Bertram Freeman - Mitford (* 1837, † 1916), the brother-in-law of Henrietta Blanche and the grandfather of Unity Mitford was . However, this is disputed by many historians.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ According to other sources, he is nicknamed after a famous horse that won the Epson Derby in 1836 .
  2. ↑ Hamann, p. 344 (see literature)
  3. ↑ Hamann, p. 347f
  4. ↑ quoted from Hamann, p. 372
  5. ↑ According to Corti, this meeting did not take place in Gödöllö, but in London. Corti, p. 399 (see literature)
personal data
SURNAME Middleton, Bay
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Middleton, William George
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English equestrian and gentleman rider
DATE OF BIRTH April 16, 1846
PLACE OF BIRTH Glasgow , Scotland
DATE OF DEATH April 9, 1892
Place of death Edge Hill , Kineton