WINIFRED ERSTWHILE
( backstory )

NOTE: Inevitably there will be some spoilers in this chapter, mainly concerning Winifred's childhood and other events taking place prior to the timeline of the books. If you feel this will interfere with your reading experience, please wait with this chapter and come back when you would like!

E A R L Y
L I F E
( 1788 — 1805 )

Winifred Erstwhile (née Seymour) was born on April 22nd, 1788 in Hertfordshire; the second daughter of Octavia and Charles Seymour. She has three sisters — Madeline, the eldest, and two younger sisters, Abigail and Jemima. Her parents are both British, born and raised in England.

The Seymours were part of the landed gentry class, untitled but well-off, meaning that Winifred had a very comfortable upbringing. She spent most of her childhood at her family home, Heyworth House, situated in the Chiltern Hills in Hertfordshire. Her fondest childhood memories are those spent outside in the gardens playing with her sisters, or sat in the library with her father.

As a child, Winifred was a stickler for the rules, even nicknamed 'the governess' by her sisters for how she always reminded them to behave. But she was not a domineering personality. She appeared quiet and shy with visitors. Winifred would barely utter a word, unless she was prompted to speak about one of her passions — such as nature, art history or playing the violin (Madeline played the piano, and together they would often duet when performing at family gatherings).

Her interest in art began when she visited an art exhibition in London in 1802. It was the Royal Academy of Arts' annual exhibition at Somerset House. She was fourteen years-old, and was taken around by her mother, aunt and uncle. Her sister, Madeline, was also there, and took a great interest in the art... but it was Winifred who was most profoundly affected by it. She saw a painting by J.M.W. Turner exhibited there, and was struck by its beauty. She had a deep appreciation for the hard work and skill gone into creating art, and specifically with Turner, she enjoyed his landscapes and could recognise the beauty she saw in the countryside.

While Winifred did not, and never would consider herself an artist, she began to sketch more, and read about art history in the books in her father's library. She managed to attend two or three more exhibitions at Somerset House while she was unmarried (and it is plausible that, unknowingly, she crossed paths with a young Benedict Bridgerton, also fascinated by the arts).

Out of all her sisters, Winifred was closest to Madeline growing up. Due to age gaps, the four sisters naturally split off into pairs of the two eldest and the two youngest. Even though they were fundamentally different in many ways — Madeline was much dreamier, sweeter and outwardly emotional — they could always learn a lot from one another. However, her relationship with her other sisters was also very tightly-knit. Winifred and Abigail were both the more traditional and well-behaved middle sisters. The sister she clashed with the most is Jemima, who was also the loudest and most rebellious. But despite their differences, they still cared deeply about one another.

Their childhoods were mostly idyllic and undisturbed. But in 1803, her father came down with a grave illness. It soon took a turn for the worst and the family prepared for the possibility that they would lose him. Everyone was very torn up over it — Octavia refused to leave her husband's side, which meant her sisters had to handle things mostly on their own. All of her three sisters were quite distraught, including Madeline, who could provide emotional support but was struggling herself. This left Winifred to step into the role of responsibility — she made sure her sisters ate regularly and went to bed on time, even helping with chores around the house despite them having plenty of staff to do so.

Luckily, Charles made a recovery, even if it left him with limited energy and joint pain as a long-term effect of his illness. This event also shaped Winifred as a person, and how her sisters saw her — in a crisis, she stayed focused and got through.

One of the biggest realisations in the aftermath of Charles's illness was how vulnerable they all were. Since the Seymours only had daughters, the estate could not pass to them (Heyworth House would instead pass to a first cousin once removed upon Charles's death). Therefore, the girls' futures had to be secured in other ways: marriage. A year later, Madeline came of age and was immediately introduced to the world of potential suitors. Her sister struggled and felt the most pressure to find a match; she had an example to set to the other three, and at this time their situation was more desperate. Madeline had to consider more carefully the fortunes of her future husband, when all she really cared about was someone who she loved.

So, Winifred watched and learned from Madeline, counting down the days with dread when it would be her turn.

L O V E   &
M A R R I A G E
( 1806 — 1813 )

In 1806, just after her eighteenth birthday, it was Winifred's turn to 'come out' into society. Many people saw this as very unusual — it was custom for only one daughter at a time to be out, but the Seymours justified it by asking: "Why would we deprive one daughter if the other is still finding her way?" This was all very well, except that Winifred had been dreading this day. Suddenly she had to go with Madeline and her mother to various balls and assembly rooms, travelling to cities like London and Bath to meet potential suitors.

But all of that changed in the October of 1806, when she met Joseph Erstwhile — their eyes met across a crowded ballroom, and the rest was history. Originally hailing from Canterbury in Kent, the Erstwhiles had arrived in Hertfordshire for some of the hunting season. They met many times during the next couple of months he was staying there, and grew very close very quickly. It was clear that they had a strong connection. They started to fall in love, but then Joseph had to leave as he was purchasing a commission to become an ensign in the British Army.

Not all hope was lost. Joseph wrote her letters, and she wrote back (they had to keep this secret, since technically a man and woman could not correspond like this unless they were engaged or otherwise romantically linked). In these letters, they could be more open and honest with each other, and grew even closer. However, neither of them were sure if their romantic feelings were reciprocated... until Joseph returned in the spring of 1807 to propose to her, and Winifred accepted wholeheartedly.

Winifred and Joseph were married in May 1807, and then went on a honeymoon to the seaside town of Ramsgate. They then moved into Highbourne, an estate Joseph had inherited — it was located just outside of Maidstone, where his barracks were, and it was a beautiful manor with a moat, surrounding fields and a large pond. The beginning of their marriage was pure bliss. Although Joseph was in the army, he was not yet sent overseas to fight.

This changed when the Peninsular War began. In 1808, Joseph was sent to the continent to fight, giving Winifred her first taste of the reality of this marriage. Their love, of course, endured, but she had underestimated the difficulties of being left alone all the time — he insisted that she should not accompany him on his military campaigns. Winifred grew much closer to her household staff, who kept her company during these times.

Additionally, Winifred had been struggling to conceive as they tried for a child, and it did not help that Joseph was away so the opportunities weren't as frequent. It deeply frustrated her because she wanted a family, and she knew that Joseph ached for it even more. She did become pregnant around 1811, while Joseph was on leave, but she suffered a miscarriage. It was heartbreaking for them both.

Between being overseas and serving at home in the militia, Joseph's personality was starting to change. He was showing signs of what would now be recognised as PTSD. Winifred tried her best to be there for him and understand what he had endured. Joseph even began to express wishes of leaving the army when the war was over.

However, before then, he would be sent over once more to fight in Europe. Joseph left in January 1813. It was to be the last time Winifred saw him.

Joseph was killed in battle on the 21st of June, 1813. Winifred heard about it a couple of weeks later, by the delivery of a letter. She was absolutely devastated by her husband's death, and she began a period of deep mourning...

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[ damn, i really wrote a whole essay for this one! winifred is a character i'm heavily invested in and you can probably tell. ]

[ but sorry for the sad ending there 🥺 losing joseph always breaks my heart ]