1869–summer 1871: double tragedy, war and bad Victorian poetry

In our first instalment, we met Anna Mues as she travelled from Germany to England and settled in as governess for the Baiss family in Kent. Picking up the story where we left off, we find Anna enjoying a comfortable upper middle-class existence, approvingly citing a rather gushing poem written by a friend of the family that lavishes praise upon the ‘delightsome union’ demonstrated by the family members.

But all is not well in paradise. The summer of 1870 marks the start of the Franco–Prussian war and Anna is in the awkward position of supporting the side that is seen by many in England to be the aggressor. Within the Baiss family too, tragedy is brewing and back in Germany, in Anna’s own family, more sadness awaits.

Read on for part two of The Anna Project. If you would like some background details on Anna, you can find them on my LinkedIn page.