Lady Hester!

The Remains of Lady Hester Stanhope's house at Djoun

This is a time for sadness and despondency in Lebanon. Unlike the UK where, at this time of year, Bank Holidays pop up with a seeminly neverending frequency, the Lebanese have only the one, on May Day. And there isn't another Bank Holiday until August! Which is quite amazing when you normally can have two Easters, an assumption, the Prophet's birthday and other assorted religious holidays, all occuring within a week of each other... (or something like that!). Anyway, May Day, like Lebanon's Independence Day, is one of only two secular holidays that are celebrated by the whole country. And it occurs on May Day. Very socialist.

So this May Day, Dom and I set of to find the home of English eccentric Lady Hester Stanhope. Lady Hester was the neice of Pitt the Younger, and, by all accounts, was completely barking. I have just finished a very entertaining 1934 biography about her by Joan Haslip (who, judging by her style of writing, was a little off-beam herself) and so I thought it would be fun to seek out her final home in the mountains above Sidon.

Some information on Lady Hester: she lived in England until the age of about 34 when she set off for a 'European Tour'. Except that she didn't stay in Europe for too long and fell in love with the Middle East instead. This might have been caused in part by a prophecy she received that she was to become the bride of the Messiah and would also become Queen of the Arabs (although I think the latter one was mainly in her head). While en route to Egypt she was shipwrecked, and having lost all her clothes, adopted a male version of Turkish dress. This, coupled with her rather unique style of addressing people, made her a bit of a 'cause celeb' in the Middle East, and she rode horseback into Damascus without a veil - unthinkable at the time.

She is also well-known for being the first European woman - and one of the few Europeans to survive the dangerous journey - to enter Palmyra, in the Syrian desert. The native Bedouins crowned her as a queen, and called her Zenobia, the ancient queen of this city. After these adventures Hester chose to live in Lebanon, and became quite a local folk hero, offering shelter to those affected by wars and battles for supremacy in the region. However, her money ran out, and she died in her home in Djoun friendless and alone. She was buried in the grounds, but her remains were moved during the civil war, and placed in the grounds of the Ambassador's residence (lovely!) before being returned to England recently. And I believe this ceremony was covered by Hello! magazine!

The house today is a real shadow of its former self. The courtyard remains, and a few walls, but much of the house was destroyed by earthquakes, or the stones used by local farmers. The dungeons are still there, as I discovered when I nearly fell in them! The terraced gardens, full of orange and olive trees, are pretty much the same as when Hester designed them and the spot the house stands on commands fantastic views of the Chouf region, and of the sea. Like many places of interest in Lebanon, however, (and I concede that Lady Hester is a little bit of a niche interest) there is no explanation or context at the site, much less any signposting to it. It's a real shame that a country with such a rich heritage only has a few sights (Baalbeck and Byblos spring to mind) with any real explanation of what happened there.

This theme was continued as we then went on to the Temple of Echmoun - the best/only example of a Phoenician Temple in the world, I think, or at least in Lebanon. There was no signage at the site explaining what is a really unique place, and one that has excited archaeologists the world over. It still is pretty impressive, though.

Other news to follow... when I think of some!