Emma, Lady Hamilton was born as Amy Lyons in a Welsh mining village. At the age of only 12 she moved to London, managing to avoid the pickpocket and pimps that lined the route. In London, she worked as a maid, theatre assistant, sex worker and dancing sales girl before becoming a high level courtesan. Somehow, from all of this, she ended up married to the British Ambassador to Naples. Her story is extraordinary, and she is the epitome of the saying ‘rags to riches.’
Sources/Further Reading
Williams, Kate: Englands Mistress, the Infamous Life of Emma, Lady Hamilton
Hardwicke, Mollie: Emma, Lady Hamilton
The Letters of Lord Nelson to Lady Hamilton Volume 1 https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/15469/pg15469-images.html
The letters of Lord Nelson to Lady Hamilton Volume II https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/15437/pg15437-images.html
Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emma,_Lady_Hamilton
Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Hamilton_(diplomat)
Art UK: From poverty to painter's muse: the remarkable life of Emma Hamilton Posted 17 Oct 2024, by Kate Williams
Portraits of Emma in National Portrait Gallery London https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/person/mp01999/emma-nee-lyon-lady-hamilton
Cavendish, Richard: Emma, Lady Hamilton Dies in Calais https://www.historytoday.com/archive/emma-lady-hamilton-dies-calais
Johnson, Ben: Emma Lady Hamiltonhttps://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofEngland/Emma-Lady-Hamilton/
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