Paul César Helleu. 1859-1927.
La Duchesse de Marlborough, Consuelo Vanderbilt. c. 1901. Drypoint. Montesquiou 8. 21 1/2 x 13 3/4. A rich impression printed on white wove paper with full margins. This portrait is the artist's master work. Signed in pencil in the image. Price upon request.
In November 1896, Consuelo Vanderbilt Balsan married Charles, 9th Duke of Marlborough (1871–1934), in 1895. She became the mistress of Blenheim Palace, tha twas so large, she never even knew the number of rooms. At the time, many weddings of European aristocrats married American heiresses. Frequently the nobility looked upon the Americans who married into their caste as intruders, unworthy of their new position.
In her autobiography, The Glitter and the Gold, she chronicles life as a dutchess, entertaining royalty and visiting Czarist Russis before the Revolution. She also discusses her divorce and subsequent marriage to Jacques Balsan, which caused sensational headlines in the 1920's. Born into igreat wealth and power, Consuelo Vanderbilt Balsan stood out among the "Dollar Princesses", thewealthy American women who wed royalty in the late l890s and early 20th Century.
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