Sir,—Fresh research correcting entrenched constructs of Irish nationalism, especially re famous widows who had limited public agency and were not financially independent, is so welcome, as in Marie Stamp’s ‘Reputations’ piece (HI 34.1, Jan./Feb. 2026) on the last extant letter by Pamela Fitzgerald, now in the National Library. I had originally been commissioned by Éamonn de Búrca in the spring of 2024 to research its background, openly stated I was not a Fitzgerald specialist but reconstructed the general context without too much difficulty. As an aside, Hector Daure had been on the St Domingue expedition, as was General Humbert (1801–2): I wondered whether their paths (or verbal swords) had crossed? Several months later I met Marie and asked her to collaborate: among other nuances she cleared up my uncertainty about the ‘prince’ Pamela was addressing. Locating her watercolour buried in the Madden Papers all this time, and learning its purpose, gets us closer to the humanity of this misrepresented figure and the challenges she faced. I had felt that, transcribing the letter before translating it, after comparing it with others in the National Library. Pamela made a spirited quip to d’Orléans about her creditors ‘tormenting’ her: against them, she said, all forms of diplomacy were useless.—Yours etc.,
SYLVIE KLEINMAN