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Lot Essay
Edith was the daughter of Nicolas Merandon du Plessis, owner of the Constance Manès sugar mill on Mauritius. Originally from Dijon, the family home from 1921 was a beautiful and very remote 5,000-acre plantation called Chamarel from which the family thrived under British rule on the island. After her father’s death the plantation was run by her brother René.
Her first husband was Cornelius Willem Dresselhuys, a Dutch consul in London, with whom she had a daughter, Ghislaine. After her first marriage broke down Edith married Gomer Berry, 1st Viscount Kemsley (1883-1968), a Welsh colliery owner and newspaper magnate.
An impressive figure in her own right, the flamboyant and formidable Lady Kemsley was appointed OBE in 1953, later becoming a commander of the Légion d'honneur.
We are grateful to Katherine Field and Sandra de László for their help with this catalogue entry, which will be included in the Philip de László catalogue raisonné, currently presented in progress online: www.delaszlocatalogueraisonne.com.
Her first husband was Cornelius Willem Dresselhuys, a Dutch consul in London, with whom she had a daughter, Ghislaine. After her first marriage broke down Edith married Gomer Berry, 1st Viscount Kemsley (1883-1968), a Welsh colliery owner and newspaper magnate.
An impressive figure in her own right, the flamboyant and formidable Lady Kemsley was appointed OBE in 1953, later becoming a commander of the Légion d'honneur.
We are grateful to Katherine Field and Sandra de László for their help with this catalogue entry, which will be included in the Philip de László catalogue raisonné, currently presented in progress online: www.delaszlocatalogueraisonne.com.