ABSTRACT
An ardent admirer of Shakespeare with no formal training, Clara Longworth de Chambrun self-published an ambitious study of his sonnets in 1913 and went on to obtain a doctorate in Renaissance studies from the Sorbonne. Yet, despite the fact that she won prestigious prizes from the Academie Française, Chambrun never really influenced Anglo-American scholarship. Her body of published fiction is also largely forgotten. Despite penning best-selling monographs, novels, plays, and translations that introduced Shakespeare to a wide French audience, Chambrun’s writings are of little interest to readers or academics today. How and why did a female scholar celebrated in her own lifetime become a mere historical footnote following her death in 1954? This chapter will explore the storied yet ambiguous legacy of a fascinating woman of many contradictions. Brave enough to visit the front, she would not deign to volunteer as a nurse. She navigated the male-dominated university system, yet vehemently opposed women’s rights. She devoted her life to Renaissance studies, yet neglected established research practices. A forgotten Shakespearean, the Countess was of an age, but not for all time.
