Posted on 2010-01-28

"Those who don't learn from history are destined to repeat it."

Lady Caroline Ashcroft, nee Bingley, was most seriously displeased. In the course of one year, she was unable to prevent not one but five imprudent marriages that should never have been born in the first place. None of her daughters married the men she wanted them to and the youngest, most shockingly of all, did not care three straws about her consent and eloped.

She planned the ideal matches for her five daughters after the passing of their dearest father left Lady Caroline to rule…I mean manage his grand estate of Ashcroft Manor in Kent as mistress, since the estate could be passed through the female line. Her eldest, Miss Helen Westbrook, would naturally marry the son of an Earl or a Viscount. Her second daughter, Miss Margaret Susan, would hopefully marry a Baron like her father. Her third daughter, Miss Emily, would marry a baronet. Her fourth daughter, Miss Florence Louise, would marry her cousin, Mr. Thomas Charles Bingley. And finally, her youngest and most favored daughter, Miss Carrie May, would marry Mr. Bennet Darcy, the only Darcy son and heir to Pemberley.

Lady Caroline sat in her spacious, grand drawing room, wondering where it all went wrong. She believed it began when Charles' second son, Mr. Andrew Bingley, took up residence in Surrey when Hartfield was let. He took Bennet, with him to help set up. Naturally, Miss Carrie and Miss Helen went along with Andrew in order to help Carrie ensnare…I mean woo, Mr. Bennet Darcy. Instead, Andrew and Bennet fell under the arts and allurements of those Knightley cousins, Belle and Amelia, the daughters of Mr. John and Mr. George Knightley. Not that Lady Caroline could blame the two. The Knightley cousins were worth £30,000 each. But what did fortune matter when Helen had a title to her name? Helen, at least, compensated for her sister's loss by marrying Mr. John Knightley's son, who would inherit Leighton Park from his father. Lady Caroline was reluctant to consent to Helen's choice, but consent she did since the Knightleys were regarded well in London society.

Miss Margaret Susan, affectionately called "Maggie Sue" by her sisters, traveled with Lady Georgiana Fowler (nee Darcy)'s daughter to Hertfordshire, visiting the Collins, who have taken Longbourn on Mr. Bennet's passing. The former Miss Darcy won the heart of a young Earl and Lady Caroline hoped that Margaret's connection would throw her in the paths of other rich men. Instead, Margaret fell in love with Mr. Collins' son, Mr. William Lucas Collins. Lady Caroline feared that "Luke," as Margaret called her beau, would by a complete sycophant like his father. Instead, Luke was more like his sensible mother. To make things even worse, Luke was actually handsome and a better manager of his estate than his father ever was. Lady Caroline again had no choice but to consent.

Miss Emily was staying in Derbyshire with the Darcy's in the summer, learning how to play the pianoforte with Miss Madeleine Darcy, Mrs. Darcy's eldest daughter. While traveling with the Darcy's to the Lake District, she fell in love with the son of General Richard Fitzwilliam, who retired after securing Anne de Bourgh's hand. General Fitzwilliam's son, Lewis, was in the Lake District with his family on holiday. Emily was too much like her uncle Charles, falling in love with many a handsome face. Lewis, however, was quite charming and had his mother's listening skills. Besides that, Lewis would inherit Rosings, which was only ten miles from Ashcroft Manor. Caroline was happy to consent to Emily's marriage since Lewis Fitzwilliam had a sizable fortune from his mother.

Miss Florence found her husband while traveling to Bath with Mrs. Darcy's second eldest daughter, Miss Anna. She met the son of a clergyman, a Mr. Howard Bertram, rector of the parsonage at Mansfield Park. Florence was always the bookish girl and loved discussing Fordyce and Pope with Howard. The man himself, however, had little connections aside from being the grandson of a baronet. His mother was from Portsmouth! The only consolation that Lady Caroline had to Florence's marriage was that Mansfield Park was entailed to Howard Bertram upon the passing of Sir Tom Bertram, who was married, but lacked an heir.

The hardest marriage (next to Mr. Darcy's of course) that Lady Caroline ever had to deal with was the elopement of her youngest daughter. Carrie May met her navy lieutenant in Bath, visiting her recently married sister. Carrie May was not yet nineteen, but fell in love with Lt. Derek Wentworth at first sight. In hindsight, Lady Caroline realized that she indulged Carrie May with too many novels. She also interrogated Derek, calling him a fortune hunter even though he himself had £25,000 from his inheritance and his own naval journeys. Lady Caroline learned of Carrie's marriage via a letter from Mrs. Darcy. Carrie and Derek were married in London under the consent of Charles, who was Carrie's guardian.

As Lady Caroline went to her bedchamber, she realized where she went wrong: she kept most of her daughters at arm's length, assuming that they would understand their duty to their legacy as the Honorable Misses Westbrook. She kept sending her daughters away in the hopes of throwing them in the paths of rich men, only for them to learn from those insipid Bennets…I mean, Mrs. Bingley and Mrs. Darcy. But what did Lady Caroline know of marrying for love when she herself married to best Miss Eliza and make Mr. Darcy regret his choice?

As Lady Caroline laid upon her bed, she thought about her own wedding. The Darcy's were in attendance but neither Miss Eliza (for she would never really be Mrs. Darcy in Caroline's mind) nor Mr. Darcy showed any sign of discomfort, envy, or regret. Even though Lord John Ashcroft's estate could be inherited to the female line, he wanted a son and was very disappointed at the results over the last five and twenty years. His passing was a surprising relief for Lady Caroline. And it wasn't much of a surprise for Lady Caroline, as she spent the rest of her life isolated on her estate and kept the illusion of a happy life in London, that her daughters rarely visited her. She did, after all, transform into another bitter widow whose overwhelming need for control pushed everyone close to her away.