Earlier this week, my nanny Manju, who served my family for over seven decades passed away. 'Manj', as I called her, was a force to reckon with. A woman well ahead of her time, who despite no formal education, taught me important life lessons in the most simplified manner.
The culture of a nanny and a governess dates back to the 19th century. While the role of the governess was focused on education, especially reading, writing and arithmetics, the nanny would focus on the wellbeing and care of a child.
A few years ago, it was revealed that Vincent Van Gogh’s governess was his first art teacher. At the impressionable age of eight, Anna Birnie was hired at the Van Gogh household. While it remains unclear how much of an influence she had on Vincent’s art, he did study under her tutelage till he moved to a boarding school. Anna’s father was an artist, her teachings would have perhaps contributed to the development of his art practice in his formative years. His early sketches, some of which are now in the collections of private collectors, such as 'The Barn and Farmhouse', he drew for his father’s birthday were completed during her tenure as a governess.
Artists have also drawn inspiration from the role of the governess and the nanny. ‘The Governess’, part of the Victoria & Albert Museum collection by Richard Redgrave, shows a governess gazing at the floor in deep thought. She holds in one hand a letter, perhaps one which stirred a mood of melancholy within her or a sense of longing. Redgrave’s sister Jane was a governess and could have been the inspiration or muse behind this work. Juxtaposing the gloominess is a depiction of children, jovial, at play in the background. The artist makes one question about the life of the governess and the loneliness of it.
But then there are also those who found the chance for discovery and exploration with their role as a governess. Anna Tonelli was a Florentine painter but also served as the governess to the daughters of Lady Henrietta and her husband the British Governor of Madras (now Chennai).
Maharaja Sarabhoji of Tanjore with a Minister, Anna Tonelli, Gouache on paper © National Trust Images/John Hammond
Anna embarked on a tour of South India with Henrietta, documenting the things she saw vividly and journaling her thoughts expressively while teaching the girls how to paint amongst other things. One of my absolute favourite works by Tonelli is a gouache on paper artwork featuring the Maharaja of Tanjore with a minister. Intricately detailed, the painting draws inspiration from the Tanjore School.
The Railway, Edouard Manet © National Gallery of Art, Washington
Eva Gonzalès and Édouard Manet, both explored the subject of the ‘Nanny and Child.’ Gonzalès’ work, painted a few years after Manet’s ‘The Railway’, is almost a second version of the same painting. A nanny is seated staring at the viewer, poised with a soft smile, the child is facing the back. There is a sense of ambiguity with both double portraits where one figure is present while the other is absent. Does it symbolise the importance of a nanny being present despite the absence of a child, busy or distracted? I wonder.
Nanny and Child, Eva Gonzalès © National Gallery of Art, Washington
While art history from a western lens sheds light on the governess and the nanny, their importance in a child's life historically, I do wonder why there were not any Indian artists popularising the relationship as their subject matter.
Popular culture too has fictionalised the governess and the nanny as well as taken inspiration from real life stories. For example, movies such as 'The Sound of Music', 'Mary Poppins', 'Nanny McPhee' or the highly acclaimed television series of the 90s titled ‘The Nanny’ have explored these roles with humour and love. As has Hindi cinema in films such as 'Swades'.
Then there are also books such as 'The Royal Nanny', a historical fiction novel on British royalty as well as the play, 'The Queen's Nanny'. A play on Elizabeth II’s governess, which played last year at the Ensemble Theatre in Sydney. An entertaining, witty, as well as informative play tracing the story of Marion Crawford and the headlines it imploded recently.
But Britain's royalty and their tryst with nannies and governesses has often made headlines. Be it the sensational news of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and the nanny who was fired within a few hours, or the much adored nanny Maria Teresa Turrion Borrallo of Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
A few years ago, Queen Victoria’s scrapbook was being auctioned in Berlin for Euros 30,000. The scrapbook gives insight on the special bond between Victoria and her German governess, Baroness Louise Lehzen. Lehzen, who later became Victoria’s private secretary, had a beautiful relationship with the Queen. The 20-page scrapbook with 16 years of memorabilia carefully collected is testimony to that bond. While royalty in Britain continues to have their very private and trusted nannies and little has changed over the century, there were a number of women from countries such as India who were brought to England during the British reign to serve various aristocratic families in Britain.
Many of these were abandoned or left to fend for themselves once the children were raised. In 1825, the Ayah's Home was founded. A safe haven for such ayahs, being home to at least 200 ayahs annually. Many claim the home would serve as a place for conversion to Christianity. Today, after many efforts, the building holds the prestigious blue plaque and the history of these ayahs is being diligently traced.
Art historic documentation and pop culture give us a timeline to how the role of a governess and a nanny has changed and evolved. While the governess is now simply non-existent, the nanny continues to be integral, playing a role of duty and responsibility, love and compassion.