"Mr and Miss Rossetti" : Elizabeth and Rossetti's Holiday Jaunt During Their Estrangement
By the end of summer 1858 Elizabeth and Rossetti's fraught seven year romance and quasi engagement had fractured . Leaving picturesque Lime Tree View, in Matlock*, where they had lodged together on and off for the previous eight or so months, as Lizzie convalesced , they parted with their relationship seemingly over. Rossetti's reluctance to marry, his infidelities, and attraction for other women had taken its toll on the relationship. Elizabeth's unhappiness, bitterness and struggles with poor health had added to ever growing tensions. Rossetti returned permanently to London, and Elizabeth vanished from his life. Resuming his life and work in London, Rossetti embarked on a relationship with Fanny Cornforth while no records exist of Elizabeth’s whereabouts or activities, nor is she mentioned in any of Rossetti’s letters. Possibly she had returned to her parents' home in Southwark. Apparently estranged from each other for...
