In Lectures of Lola Montez (Countess of Landsfeld) including her autobiography (New York, 1858), frontispiece., Facsimile signature: Lola Montez., Lola Montez was born in Ireland and spent her childhood in India, Scotland, France, and England. As an adult, she trained as a dancer and traveled the royal courts of Europe. She had a forceful, captivating personality, and at times she wielded considerable political influence, particularly in Bavaria, where she was the mistress of King Ludwig I. Later in life, she moved to America, where she performed as a dancer, actress, and lecturer. In one of her public lectures, she proclaimed, "It takes most women two-thirds of their lifetime to discover, that men may be amused by, without respecting them; and every woman may make up her mind that to be really respected, she must possess merit, she must have accomplishments of mind and heart, and there can be no real beauty without these."--P. 121-122., Another portrait appears in: Gleason's pictorial drawing-room companion, vol. 2, no. 16, (April 17, 1852), p. 249., Bust-length portrait of Montez., Another portrait (entitled "Morning") appears in: Snow flake (1849), frontispiece. The sitter is identified as Lola Montez on the basis of a portrait by Jules Laure; the painting is now located in the collection of the Leeds Castle Foundation, Maidstone, Kent, UK.
