Maria Bicknell was the
daughter of Charles Bicknell, a solicitor to the Prince Regent and the
Admiralty. She lived with her parents in London, but would often visit her
grandfather in Suffolk. He was Dr. Durand Rudde, the Rector of East Bergholt
and also a very wealthy man.
Maria
first met the impoverished landscape painter John Constable when she was twelve
and he was twenty. They met again when she was a few years older, and love came
unbidden into their hearts. But Constable was living on a measly allowance of
100 pounds a year from his father, which was scarcely enough for his own
sustenance. They had to carry on their secret affair for seven long years,
until the death of his father when he inherited sufficient amount of money to
support a wife.
Their
marriage was stoutly opposed by both families. Maria’s grandfather threatened
to disown her, as Constable belonged to a lower social stratum. His father was
not an intellectual but a trader, even though he owned a prosperous mill.
Besides, Constable’s paintings did not bring in a regular income.
Though
Constable was a landscape painter and an ardent exponent of naturalism, he
occasionally undertook portrait painting because of financial necessity. Three
months before their marriage, he painted a portrait of Maria. She was in London
and Constable wrote from Suffolk, “I would not be without your portrait for all
the world. The sight of it calms my spirit in all trouble.”
Their
marriage took place in 1816, at the Church of St. Martin Fields in London.
Neither family attended the wedding. But their steadfast love carried them
through stiff opposition of their families and also through severe financial
hardships. Charles Bicknell gave his daughter 50 pounds a year. But when her
grandfather died, she received 4000 pounds as part of her inheritance.
Maria
bore seven children in quick succession. She also had one miscarriage. Perhaps
in those days the subject of contraception was taboo, and the young couple had
no clue about Planned Parenthood.
Frequent
child bearing took a toll on Maria’s health. She contracted tuberculosis and
died at the age of 41, a few months after delivering her seventh child. On
November 23rd, 1828, she was buried at St. John-at-Hampstead
Churchyard in London.
On
her death, Constable went into deep depression. He was unable to concentrate on
his paintings. His clients were dissatisfied with his work and grumbled.
“I am intensely
distressed and can hardly attend to anything,” he apologized.
To add to his loss, he
was saddled with the responsibility of looking after seven children.
He wrote to his
brother, “I do feel the loss of my angel. God only knows how my children will
be brought up. She was a devoted, industrious, religious mother who was all
affection. …….The face of the world has totally changed for me.”
Their married life lasted for a mere twelve years.
Frequent child bearing and tuberculosis had debilitated Maria. Death dealt the coup de grace.
