On 7th December 1831 Joanna Mary Boyce was born to George Boyce.
The Diary of George Price Boyce 1851. 27th May 1851. To Great Exhibition for first time. The aerial effect of the same enhanced by the rich and brilliant colours of the various fabrics suspended about was more bewitching than I expected accompanied my sisters Ann and Joanna [aged 19] to R. Italian Opera—Beethoven's "Fidelio," the grandest piece of music I had ever heard.
The Diary of George Price Boyce 1851. 7th December 1851. Mother grieved me much by assuring me that Tom Hake had behaved far more cruelly towards Joanna [aged 20] than I thought or can think possible. She thinks that he has gone so far as to kiss her. Hitherto I have always considered the great attention I have seen him pay to some girls to arrive from natural weakness and thoughtlessness, and I have told him as much. But this fact is without excuse, and most unfeeling. I fear he lets his feelings carry him away so far as to be unable to retreat without wounding the other party. I hope, however, I do not think that Joanna thinks about him and dwells upon his conduct much now.
The Diary of George Price Boyce 1851. 30th December 1851. Called for John Seddon [aged 24] at 10 0'clock, who accompanied me to St. Paul's Cathedral to witness Turner's [deceased] funeral. We first looked over the Cathedral and criticised the wretched taste of the greater part of the monuments, one by Behnes [aged 56] seemed to be almost the only one that was simple, grand, and characteristic. The mourners, consisting of the Members of the Royal Academy and many personal friends, alighted at the west entrance and advanced slowly to the choir preceded by the choristers, etc. Seddon and I obtained a central place in the choir, close to the coffin. The beautiful and awe-striking service for the dead was then gone through, its influence being much augmented by the sublimity of the scene. The body was then conveyed into the vaults, followed by the mourners. Father, who had brought Joanna [aged 20], bought a ticket which admitted us all three into the vaults. I remained to see the stone rolled over him and to assist in adjusting the same—they first threw a basket full of human bones on and beside the coffin before rolling the stone over it. It was placed between the resting places of James Barry, the painter (next to which was that of Sir Joshua Reynolds), and Constantia, the great grand-daughter of Sir Christopher Wren, next to the tomb of Sir Christopher himself.
The Diary of George Price Boyce 1852. 9th June 1852. Went with Joanna [aged 20] to an evening party at McArthur's. Mrs. and Helen Field were there; the former, as usual, behaved very distantly and rudely to me, saying goodnight to Helen and Joanna and not noticing me who sat by them. Fortunately she left before supper appeared, and I had some very pleasant chat with Helen who is as pretty, artless, and winning as ever; and with none of her mother's low-bred pride. Recommended Ruskin's "Modern Painters" to Helen's reading.
On 20th September 1853 [her father] George Boyce died.
1855. Joanna Mary Boyce [aged 23]. "Elgiva". Ruskin [aged 35] described the work in the following way: 'As we watch the face for a little time, the slight arch of the lip seems to begin to quiver, and the eyes fill with ineffable sadness and on-look of despair', which is a tad florid, as she could be trying to remember if she locked the back door or not. The canvas was bought by her brother and it has remained in the family ever since.
1857 to 1861. Joanna Mary Boyce [aged 25]. "The Departure: An Episode of the Child's Crusade 13th Century".
The Diary of George Price Boyce 1855-1857. 7th December 1857. Joanna's [aged 26] birthday, and the day [her future husband] Wells [aged 28] and she desired to be married on, but in all probability they will not get the deed in time at Rome, where they now are? I call for all happiness and prosperity in store for them.
On 9th December 1857 Henry Tanworth Wells [aged 28] and Joanna Mary Boyce [aged 26] were married.
William of Worcester's Chronicle of England
William of Worcester, born around 1415, and died around 1482 was secretary to John Fastolf, the renowned soldier of the Hundred Years War, during which time he collected documents, letters, and wrote a record of events. Following their return to England in 1440 William was witness to major events. Twice in his chronicle he uses the first person: 1. when writing about the murder of Thomas, 7th Baron Scales, in 1460, he writes '… and I saw him lying naked in the cemetery near the porch of the church of St. Mary Overie in Southwark …' and 2. describing King Edward IV's entry into London in 1461 he writes '… proclaimed that all the people themselves were to recognize and acknowledge Edward as king. I was present and heard this, and immediately went down with them into the city'. William’s Chronicle is rich in detail. It is the source of much information about the Wars of the Roses, including the term 'Diabolical Marriage' to describe the marriage of Queen Elizabeth Woodville’s brother John’s marriage to Katherine, Dowager Duchess of Norfolk, he aged twenty, she sixty-five or more, and the story about a paper crown being placed in mockery on the severed head of Richard, 3rd Duke of York.
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1860. Joanna Mary Boyce [aged 28]. "Shanklin, Isle of Wight".
1861. Joanna Mary Boyce [aged 29]. "A Bird of God". Her last painting which was on her easel when she died.
1861. Joanna Mary Boyce [aged 29]. Portrait of "Mrs. Eaton [aged 25]".
On 15th July 1861 Joanna Mary Boyce [aged 29] died from childbirth shortly after the birth of her third child.
1862. Joanna Mary Boyce. "Family of the Artist".
On 16th January 1903 [her former husband] Henry Tanworth Wells [aged 74] died.