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Gabrielle Enthoven OBE (born Augusta Gabrielle Eden Romaine, 12 January 1868 – 18 August 1950) was an English playwright, amateur actress, theatre archivist, and prolific collector of theatrical ephemera relating to the London stage. In 1911, Enthoven began campaigning for the establishment of a theatrical section in one of the British museums. In 1924, the Victoria and Albert Museum accepted her private collection, at this time containing over 50,000 theatrical playbills and programmes.〔''The Times'', 30 August 1924〕 The material became the founding collection of the museum's theatre and performance archives. Enthoven's unparalleled knowledge of the London stage and its history earned her the sobriquet 'the theatrical encyclopaedia'.〔''The Lady's Realm'', Vol. XXVI, pp.465–470〕 == Early life == Gabrielle Enthoven was born at 21 New Street, Spring Gardens, Westminster, London to William Govett Romaine (1815–1893) and Frances Pheobe Romaine, née Tennant (1822/3-1909). Enthoven's year of birth was incorrectly listed in the family Bible as 1870, a fact which Enthoven did not discover until her sixtieth birthday. On finding this out, Enthoven remarked: 'Such a shock darling. I was giving a lovely party and John Gielgud and everybody was coming, and suddenly I discovered that I was not sixty at all, but sixty-two. Wasn't it awful?'〔'Gabrielle Enthoven' by Barbara Vereker in ''The Queen'', 25 February 1942〕 Her father was Judge Advocate General in the Crimea and India, Legal Advisor to the Board of Admiralty, and Minister in Egypt.〔Dictionary of National Biography, 1885–1900, Volume 49, Romaine, William Govett〕〔''The Sphere'', 30 April 1927〕 Much of Enthoven's childhood was spent abroad as she accompanied her father on trips to various postings in both India and the Middle East. In Egypt, Enthoven used to ride in her own carriage during state occasions and rode in the desert with Charles George Gordon〔'Gabrielle Enthoven' by Barbara Vereker in ''The Queen'', 25 February 1942〕 On her father's retirement in 1879, the family returned to England, settling in a house named 'The Old Priory' just outside of Windsor, Berkshire where Enthoven lived until her father's death in 1893. Enthoven had never been educated at school, nor had she been tutored by a governess. As a result, she was fifteen years old before she could either read or write. She could, however, as a result of her travels abroad, speak fluent Egyptian, Turkish, two Hindustani dialects, French, Italian, Spanish, and some German.〔''The Sphere'', 30 April 1927〕 There were occasions when a carriage was sent from nearby Windsor Castle to collect Enthoven and her friends to play with the young Princess Mary of Teck, later to become Queen Mary of Teck. Enthoven recalled slapping the young princess across the face on one occasion, an incident which the two women would recall in later years when the Queen visited Enthoven at the Victoria and Albert Museum〔Gabrielle Enthoven Biographical File, Theatre and Performance Department, Victoria and Albert Museum〕 Enthoven was a small child when she first visited the theatre. She climbed out of her bedroom window clutching a shilling and made the journey to the Gaiety Theatre, London to see a production of The Forty Thieves. Climbing beneath the legs of the waiting crowd, Enthoven was picked up by a large navvy who placed her upon his shoulders and pushed his way through the throng of people to find them a seat on the front row of the gallery. Half-way through the performance, he took out an orange from his pocket, bit into it, pushed some sugar in the hole with his thumb, and gave it to Enthoven to suck.〔'Gabrielle Enthoven' by Barbara Vereker in ''The Queen'', 25 February 1942〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Gabrielle Enthoven」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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