Eliza Rosanna Gilbert, Countess of Landsfeld (17 February 1821 – 17 January 1861), better known by the stage name Lola Montez (), was an dancer and actress who became famous as a Spanish dancer, , and of King , who made her ( of Landsfeld). At the start of the , she was forced to flee. She proceeded to the United States via Austria, Switzerland, France and London, to return to her work as an entertainer and lecturer.
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When she had her London debut as “Lola Montez, the Spanish dancer” in June 1843, she was recognised as “Mrs. James”. The resulting notoriety hampered her career in England, so she departed for the continent, where she had success in Paris and Warsaw. At this time, she was almost certainly accepting favours from a few wealthy men, and was regarded by many as a courtesan.
In 1844, Eliza, now known as Lola Montez, made a personally disappointing Parisian stage debut as a dancer in ‘s opera . She met and had an affair with , who introduced her to the circle of . After performing in various European capitals, she settled in , where she was accepted into the city’s , becoming acquainted with , with whom she was also rumoured to have had a dalliance. In Paris she would meet , “owner of the newspaper with the highest circulation in France, and also the newspaper’s drama critic”. Through their romance, Montez revitalised her career as a dancer. Later on, after the two had their first quarrel over Lola’s attendance at a party, Dujarrier attended the party and, in a drunken state, offended . When Dujarrier was challenged to a duel by de Beauvallon, Dujarrier was shot and killed.
Lola failed in her attempts at a theatrical comeback in various American cities. She arranged in 1857 to deliver a series of moral lectures in Britain and America written by Rev. . She spent her last days in rescue work among women. In November 1859, reported that Lola Montez was:
Returning to England, Lola Montez married another British officer, only to be prosecuted for bigamy by her first husband, now-Captain James. She fled to Spain, and in 1851, came to New York City. There, and on the stages of Boston, Philadelphia, New Orleans, San Francisco, and Australia, she performed her notorious Spider Dance, spinning wildly as she pretended to shake spiders from her petticoats…Her unique personality, defiance of convention, flair for publicity, cosmopolitan background, and great beauty, made her a sensation from the cities of the East to the mining camps of California.
