The Hamwood Papers of the Ladies of Llangollen and Caroline Hamilton

:The "Ladies of Llangollen", Eleanor Butler (1739–1829) and Sarah Ponsonby (1755–1831), were two upper-class Irish women who lived together as a couple. Their relationship scandalized and fascinated their contemporaries.[1] The pair moved to a Gothic house in Llangollen, North Wales, in 1780 after leaving Ireland to escape the social pressures of conventional marriages. Over the years, numerous distinguished visitors called upon them. Guests included Byron, Shelley, Wellington, and Wordsworth, the last of whom wrote a sonnet about them...Butler and Ponsonby lived together for 50 years. Their books and glassware carried both sets of initials and their letters were jointly signed. Towards the end of their lives, they both dressed in black riding habits and men's top hats; some visitors thought it was eccentric and outdated – especially the hair powder – but neighbours thought the clothes were practical for living outdoors...Rumours that they were in a sexual relationship floated around during and after their lives. In 1791, a magazine described them and implied that they were in a sexual relationship. According to Patricia Hampl, they were appalled by this idea, and objected to the magazine's characterisation to the point of consulting Edmund Burke over the possibility of suing the magazine for libel...In sharp contrast to the writings of their contemporary Anne Lister, there is nothing in their extensive correspondence or diaries that indicates a sexual relationship. Some consider Butler's and Ponsonby's relationship to be a Boston marriage, or a romantic relationship between two women who chose to live together and have "marriage-like relationships". Others conclude that the two had a non-sexual romantic friendship. Norena Shopland says that modern attitudes designed to distinguish same-sex relationships from a romantic friendship indicate they had a sexual relationship. According to Fiona Brideoake, the description of queer is more appropriate than the specific label of lesbian, particularly as queerness is a broad concept and significantly defined by its difference from typicality. Brideoake writes that their relationship was celebrated by the poet Anna Seward as a form of mourning the relationships that she could not form. Eugene Coyle recounts that a "succession of their pet dogs were named 'Sappho'.""--Wikipedia.