Effie

Effie Gray, a beautiful and intelligent young socialite, rattled the foundations of England’s Victorian age when she dared to end her marriage to art critic John Ruskin. Defying convention, she had their marriage annulled. Later, she remarried artist John Everett Millais; the two enjoyed a long, happy union that produced eight children. Effie recounts the infamous Victorian love triangle that inspired dozens of literary works.

Author Suzanne Fagence Cooper was granted exclusive access to Effie’s previously unseen letters and diaries. With this material to guide her, she reveals the true story that rocked London society. Married at age 19 to the 28-year-old Ruskin, Effie found herself trapped in a loveless, unconsummated union after her husband rejected her on their wedding night. He would later claim that he found her (and sex) repulsive.

Ruskin’s behavior toward Effie throughout their marriage vacillated between indifference and open hostility. He called her “mentally unstable” and claimed she was unfit for motherhood. Effie was desperately unhappy but had little recourse to free herself from her husband. Before 1857 in England, a divorce could only be granted by a special Act of Parliament. It was an expensive and complicated undertaking. English wives had very few legal rights. During Queen Victoria’s reign, a mere four women had been granted a divorce and allowed to marry again.

Effie’s situation was complicated by her husband’s stature. The publication of Modern Painters in 1843 made Ruskin the most admired art critic of his generation. His contemporaries lavished praise on him. Elizabeth Barrett Browning gushed that Ruskin was “no ordinary man.” Effie knew she risked being ostracized for leaving Ruskin. She also feared his parents would try to have her committed to a mental institution.

Her in-laws berated her and resented her for “stealing” their son away from them. Ruskin routinely chose to spend time with them instead of his wife. Life became unbearable for Effie. The stress took a toll on her health. Her spirits were lifted, however, when she met Ruskin’s protégé Millais on a trip to Scotland. The two fell in love. Effie realized she could no longer remain in an increasingly abusive relationship. With the help and support of her family, she left Ruskin and filed for an annulment. Her request was granted on the grounds that the marriage had not been consummated.

In Cooper’s hands, the story becomes an important new look at the work of both Ruskin and Millais with Effie emerging as a key figure in their artistic development. Drawn from the title character’s own words, Effie tells a fascinating tale of love and scandal in the Pre-Raphaelite period.