Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Inspiration for the Spirit of Ecstasy.
After all these years it has been revealed that the inspiration for the Rolls-Royce flying lady was the lover of Lord Montagu of Beaulieu, Eleanor Thornton, his personal assistant.
According to the present Lord Montagu, his mother knew about the affair and condoned it.
Lord Montagu was friendly with the managing director of Rolls-Royce and together they decided that a small statuette was needed to help brand the marque, which is what happened in 1911.
Unfortunately, several years later , when Lord Montagu and Eleanor were travelling on a cruise ship in the Mediterranean in 1916, the ship was hit by a torpedo from a German submarine, which wrecked the ship.
Montagu survived but the body of his lover was never found. However, she can now be remembered by those who are aware of the story.
Tom Bliss has written a beautiful song to commemorate this love story.Google him to find out more.