Lost1911Thanhouser Company1,000 feetLiterary adaptation

Lady Clare

Name: Lady Clare
Genre: Literary adaptation
Released: 1911-05-19

No copy you can watch online. No print is known to survive. What follows is what does: the release, the cast, the story, and what the trade press said at the time.

The story

“Tennyson’s poem of Lady Clare tells of a nurse, Alice, employed by the earl to nurse his motherless infant daughter—the little Lady Clare. Alice has a child of her own, also a baby girl, and when the earl’s little one dies, Alice substitutes her own child, which is brought up in luxury as the earl’s daughter, and in time inherits his vast estate. Lord Ronald, the earl’s next of kin, is really the rightful heir, spends his early years in close companionship with Alice’s daughter, and when they are grown, this friendship develops into love. When Alice learns that her daughter is to be the wife of Lord Ronald, she confesses her deception, but cautions her daughter not to tell. The girl, however, is too noble to deceive and seeking out Lord Ronald, tells him she is ‘a beggar born, and not the Lady Clare.’ Ronald, loving her for herself alone, assures her that her rank means nothing to him.”

Summary from The Moving Picture World · 20 May 1911

Background of the scenario

Alfred, the first Baron Tennyson, was born the third son of the rector George Tennyson in Lincolnshire, England. He was educated first by his father, and then later at Trinity College where he joined the Apostles (an elite intellectual club for friendship and discussion) and met A.H. Hallam, who was to become a good friend and in 1832 a traveling companion on the Continent. Hallam’s death in 1833 inspired the later work, In Memoriam. Tennyson was first published in 1827 and received his first award for poetry in 1829. Around 1830 he became engaged to Emily Sellwood, but the two were not married until 1850, due to the poverty brought about by the disinheritance of his family branch. His father, an epileptic and violent alcoholic, died in 1831 and left Alfred a fear of not only having but also passing down the two disorders genetically. In 1850, by which time he was a well-known poet, his In Memoriam was published. In 1857 he became the poet laureate of England, succeeding Wordsworth. He worked continually thereafter to produce a considerable output, and was sociable only hesitantly. He tended to declaim his own work to respectful audiences but had to be shielded from criticism by his wife and his son Hallam, the latter named for his late friend. Tennyson died in 1892 and was buried in Westminster Abbey.

Lady Clare, a poem written in 1884, told of a lady, ostensibly of high social birth, who turned out to be the daughter of a maid, substituted for the real Lady Clare who died as an infant. Upon learning her true status, Lady Clare, engaged to a English lord, dressed as a pauper and disavowed her former position, although her true mother, who revealed the secret, offered not to tell anyone. Upon learning that his “lady” was but a peasant child, her betrothed, Lord Ronald, stated his true love for her, declared that he could care less about her true humble beginnings, and noted that upon their marriage she would indeed become a “lady” after all.

What the papers said

3 reviews · 1 advertisement

Read in full · 1 min

“A very picturesque portrayal of Tennyson’s story is given in this film. The scenery, costumes and the property are very remarkable and also the photography, but the acting is exceedingly poor and in many cases hurried. When Alice, the nurse, tells Lady Clare that she is not the real ‘Lady,’ one of the most dramatic parts of the story occur; yet this is rushed through and the story of the switching of children by the nurse is thrown on the screen. Likewise Lord Ronald’s acceptance of the simple maid in making her Lady Clare again is passed over very briefly. Lord Ronald’s acting is as though he had known all the time why she was dressed in the russet gown and had made up his mind what to do beforehand. The ordinary parts of the story are excellently done and are highly pleasing. The selection itself of a subject of this kind is worthy of much praise and we wish to commend the film highly as well as to point out the weak points mentioned.”

The Billboard · 20 May 1911

Read in full · 1 min

“Photographically this is one of the most artistic productions yet made by the Thanhouser Company, who have made some notable photo presentations. It is medieval in time and poetic in story, being either a romance of myth or action. Lady Clare is in reality the daughter of her elderly nurse, having been transposed by the latter upon the death of her daughter of the Earl, her master, whose nurse she was. The exchanged baby grew up in ignorance of her actual birth and not until her betrothal to a courtier of high rank does the mother reveal the secret. The girl then dons a gown suitable to her more lowly station, but her lover will have none of it and takes her back to the castle, promising to marry her on the morrow. Many scenes are tinted, two being picturesquely and appropriately framed in the shape of a heart. The interiors are well done and the exteriors beautifully chosen.”

REVIEW in “Film Charts,” The Moving Picture News, May 20, 1911:

“Start: Deception

“Finish: Truth

“Moral: Love levels everything

“Reception: Fine

“Biggest moment: The last one”

The Morning Telegraph · 21 May 1911

More reviews

3 June 1911The Moving Picture World1 min

“This film reproduces Tennyson’s poem in the true spirit of poetry and romance. The young lady who plays Lady Clare was a fortunate choice for the part, and she gives more to the picture than any other character in it. Its atmosphere suggests Shakespeare rather than Tennyson; that is a very small matter. We take pleasure in commending the film.”

12 May 1911The Moving Picture World1 min

“The story of this famous poem tale is familiar to all, ‘it pays to be frank,’ which as the gist the moral conveyed, is so essentially wholesome and uplifting that it may well be honored with filming. The line ‘I am a beggar born,’ she said—‘and not the Lady Clare’ have become historical for the very air of simple frankness that runs through them, and the film’s story must be a success with so pleasing a motif.”