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Edith RooseveltTheodora's Second Wife and America's First Lady
Date of Birth: 08.08.1861
Country:  USA |
Content:
Biography of Edith Roosevelt
Edith Roosevelt was the second wife of Theodore Roosevelt and the First Lady of the United States. She was born on August 6, 1861, in Norwich, Connecticut. Her parents moved to New York when she was a child, and her father, Charles Carow, became the manager of the New York Chamber of Commerce. The Carow and Roosevelt families belonged to the upper class and maintained friendly relations. Edith knew Theodore from childhood as she was friends with his sisters, Corinne and Anna. They grew up together, played together, shared common interests, and fell in love as teenagers. The only thing that separated them was school, but it did not hinder their mutual feelings. They wrote long letters to each other whenever one of them was away with their parents. Even before Theodore enrolled at Harvard University, both families considered them engaged. There was no doubt that they would stay together. Edith visited Theodore at Harvard, and he proudly introduced her to his classmates. "She had never been more beautiful than she was then," he wrote in his diary. "Everyone admired her elegance. She conducted herself as wonderfully as she looked."
Their Separation and Reunion
When Theodore was in his second year at Harvard, something suddenly went wrong between them. Their arguments became more frequent and intense. After a big fight, they broke up. Edith later revealed that Theodore proposed to her, but she declined because her parents considered her too young for marriage. Edith continued to be friends with Theodore's sisters and soon learned that Theodore had fallen madly in love with seventeen-year-old Alice Lee and was going to marry her. Edith's reaction to the news is unknown. She was invited to the wedding, and she attended, although it is safe to say that she was not thrilled about Theodore marrying someone else.
Soon after the birth of their daughter Alice, Alice tragically died of childbirth fever. Theodore was devastated by the loss of his beloved wife. He avoided Edith as before and, when in New York, even asked Anna to inform him about Edith's visits to avoid accidentally running into her. Edith did the same. However, the two young people belonged to the same social circle and were bound to meet sooner or later. It happened on an autumn day in 1885 when Edith unexpectedly visited Anna and ran into Theodore. They talked for a long time and started seeing each other again. Edith was beautiful, even enchanting, with chestnut hair and brown eyes. In an instant, their youthful feelings rekindled. In November 1885, they secretly got engaged. Theodore had some doubts about the rightness of this step because it had only been a year and a half since his wife's death. The thought of a second marriage troubled him, as he saw it as a sign of a man's weakness. Gradually, his doubts faded, and Edith preferred to wait a little longer.
The Wedding and Family Life
After the death of Charles Carow, Edith's family found themselves in a difficult financial situation and moved to England. Of course, before leaving, Edith did not tell anyone about the secret engagement. A year later, Theodore Roosevelt arrived in London, and on December 2, 1886, their quiet and modest wedding took place. Theodore was 28 years old, and Edith was 25. The ceremony took place at St. George's Church.
On that day in London, there was such a thick fog that Theodore's sister, entering the church, could not see him standing at the altar. The newlyweds spent four months in Europe, traveling through England, France, and Italy. In the spring, they returned to New York, where they were warmly greeted by Edith's friend and Theodore's sister, Anna, and their three-year-old daughter Alice. The Roosevelt's second marriage was as happy as the first. Edith was a kind stepmother to Alice. Theodore asked Edith not to remind Alice of her late mother, although little Alice often visited her maternal grandparents.
Edith was reserved, introverted, and unsentimental, a complete contrast to her predecessor. If Theodore referred to his first wife as "baby," he would never think of calling Edith that. He called her "Edie," and she called him "Theodore."
They moved into a new large house in Oyster Bay, named "Sagamore Hill" after a local Indian chief. The house had 26 rooms, including 12 bedrooms. The rooms gradually filled up with the trophies of the avid hunter, Theodore. The Roosevelt family quickly grew. Edith gave birth to four sons (Theodore, Kermit, Archibald, Quentin) and one daughter, Ethel. The first son, Theodore, was born on September 13, 1887, and the last one, Quentin, on November 19, 1897.
Roosevelt was always proud of his children and devoted a lot of time to them. He wanted his eldest son to become a renowned athlete. Edith unsuccessfully tried to convince her husband that their son was too weak and constitutionally incapable of withstanding all the training he was forced into. It was only when doctors persuaded him that a ten-year-old boy should not be subjected to excessive exercise that he relented. Roosevelt loved playing with the children. One of his friends once said, "You never forget that Roosevelt is only seven years old." And Edith treated her husband like a big child. When she was leaving, she kissed all the children on the forehead, saving the last kiss for her husband and saying, "Behave yourself while I'm away."
Knowing her husband well, Edith did not pity him much. One day, Roosevelt injured his forehead in the stable and, bleeding, ran into the house. Seeing him, she calmly remarked, "You'd better go to the bathroom instead of the parlor to avoid leaving stains on the carpet."
Edith was not only a caring mother and a loyal wife but also a support to her husband. When Roosevelt held a position in the government, Edith hosted receptions with influential politicians. She knew how to listen without interfering in political discussions, occasionally expressing her opinion about certain individuals, which quickly spread among social circles, for example, about Eleanor Roosevelt: "Poor, simple girl. Her lips and teeth cannot promise her a great future... But even an ugly little duckling can become a swan."
Edith did not rejoice when her husband was sent to Cuba as the leader of the Rough Riders cavalry division during the Spanish-American War in 1898. She worried about his life. And when he returned to New York in the glow of glory, she struggled to cope with the press besieging their home in Oyster Bay.
She was pleased with her husband's popularity but not with the intense attention from the press and the public.
From 1899 to 1901, Roosevelt served as the Governor of New York. Edith had to participate in many official receptions. To avoid the tedious ritual of shaking hands, she always carried a bouquet of flowers. In 1900, she was not enthusiastic when her husband was offered the opportunity to run for vice president alongside William McKinley. She felt that he was being "sidelined" by accepting the position. This opinion was shared by Roosevelt, but he accepted the offer.
After the Republicans' victory in the election, Roosevelt became the vice president and quickly realized that this position did not contribute to his political influence as much as he wanted. Furthermore, prominent American politician Mark Hanna spoke against Roosevelt, saying, "Don't you see that between this madman and the White House stands only one man's life?"
The assassination of President McKinley in September 1901 in Buffalo was a turning point in Roosevelt's life. Roosevelt learned about it while spending time with his family in the Adirondack Mountains. He immediately traveled to Buffalo. On September 14, 1901, Edith received a telegram from her husband: "At 2:15 this morning, President McKinley passed away." She packed her things and returned home to Oyster Bay with the children. In Buffalo, the same day, Theodore Roosevelt was sworn in as the President. He became the 26th President of the United States at the age of 42. To this day, he remains the youngest President of the United States.
Soon after her husband's inauguration, Edith traveled to Washington for the funeral of the late President McKinley. When McKinley's widow left the White House, Roosevelt and her family moved in.
During Roosevelt's presidency, the White House was always lively, with various attractions organized. In the garden, they had a bear named Jonathan Edwards, a guinea pig named "Father Grady," and a pony.
Edith led an active social life as the First Lady and made many changes to the White House etiquette. Instead of traditional receptions, she organized concerts and musical evenings, which became popular. The public followed all of this with goodwill. It was not surprising that the Roosevelt family enjoyed the great respect of journalists since the White House was always open to them, allowing them to report anything interesting.
Edith worked to present Alice Roosevelt's wedding as a major social event in the American capital. The wedding took place in the White House on February 17, 1906. Twenty-two-year-old Alice married thirty-six-year-old bald Congressman Nicholas Longworth from Ohio. There were 680 guests at the wedding reception. Many representatives of foreign countries sent wedding gifts to the young couple.
Edith completely redesigned the White House, removing Victorian furniture from the salons. In the hall, she set up a gallery with portraits of American presidents' wives. She also displayed her own portrait there. In her youth, she had gathered a very valuable porcelain collection in the United States. Now, as the First Lady, she organized an exhibition of porcelain used by the Presidents of the United States, their families, and other famous personalities.
Roosevelt considered his wife the ideal hostess of the White House, which he publicly emphasized many times. One of the White House staff, Archie Butt, once said, "In seven years of living in the White House, Edith Roosevelt never made a single mistake."
With great love, Edith took care of her husband, trying to make his official duties easier. She would cut out articles and cartoons about him from newspapers or underline the most interesting parts. Some claim that Roosevelt admitted that he often had to apologize if he did not follow his wife's advice. Edith had a significant influence on her husband but never demonstrated it. If he had to work too much, she insisted that he rest and relax. And when he sat in his study on the first floor of the White House until late at night, she would stomp her feet and call him, "Theodore!" - "Yes, Edie!" he would answer, finish his work, and go upstairs.
Edith took her responsibilities very seriously and was the first wife of the President of the United States to have her own secretary. Isabella Hagner was hired for this position. She received a salary of $1400 per year. Once a week, Edith met with members of the Cabinet to discuss various protocol matters.
Edith enjoyed taking walks, regardless of the weather. Every morning after breakfast, she would walk around the White House with her husband. She also enjoyed horseback riding and was nearly killed when her horse threw her off.
Edith often felt jealous of Theodore's sisters. She felt they had too much influence on him and even accused him of meeting them too often. She demanded that they, like everyone else, ask for an audience with him. Theodore did consult with his sisters frequently, especially with Anna. Edith had her own likes and dislikes. If she didn't like someone, she preferred not to meet them at the White House. When Theodore said it was improper to avoid those you do not respect, she would cite a migraine. Once, after a meeting with Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands at the White House, she called her "stupid."
She also despised sexual licentiousness. She saw Washington as a kind of Sodom and Gomorrah. She even suspected promiscuity in many bachelor households.
Once, she crossed out a woman's name from the guest list because there were rumors of her affair with a diplomat. Grand Duke Boris was denied an audience due to his reputation as a womanizer.
Edith's daughter's debutante ball was presented as a major social event in the American capital in 1908. Although she was not yet 18 years old, her parents wanted her debut to take place at the White House before the end of Roosevelt's presidency.
In February 1909, just before the end of his term, Edith expressed the opinion that, finally, after the family left the White House, their lives would no longer be subject to public criticism.
The Roosevelt family left the White House on March 3, 1909. Just 19 days later, Theodore decided to participate in an expedition to Africa. Edith was against the trip, considering it dangerous. Eleven months later, she met her husband in Khartoum, relieved to see him alive and well. From Khartoum, they embarked on a journey through Europe.
With her approval, Roosevelt ran for president again in 1912 but was unsuccessful. During the campaign, Roosevelt became the target of an assassination attempt. When he was delivering a speech in Chicago, a shot rang out, but despite that, Roosevelt finished his speech before being taken to the hospital. The news reached Edith while she was in a theater in New York. The next day, she traveled to Chicago, and when she arrived at the hospital, she saw that Roosevelt was not following the doctor's orders. He was meeting people in his room to continue the campaign. Edith settled in the neighboring room and did not allow visitors, which allowed the doctors to provide intensive treatment. After a week,
