Empire Podcast Episode 321 Summary

Title: Exploding Rum-filled Coffins, Anglo-Indian Sisterhood, & Julia Margaret Cameron
Air Date: January 1, 2026
Host: William Dalrymple (Anita Anand absent)
Guest: Emily Burns, Art Historian and Editor of Women of the Patel Sisters

Main Theme

This episode dives into the vibrant and unconventional lives of the Pattle sisters—most notably the pioneering Victorian photographer Julia Margaret Cameron—and highlights their remarkable Anglo-Indian heritage, eccentric family lore (including the infamous “rum-filled coffin”), and the extraordinary artistic legacy of their close-knit sisterhood. With a focus on how Cameron and her sisters upended expectations in a racially rigid era, William Dalrymple and Emily Burns explore the intersection of family, empire, art history, and Anglo-Indian identity through revealing anecdotes and critical reflection.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Introducing Julia Margaret Cameron (03:09)

• Cameron as a photographic pioneer, taking up the art at age 48.
• Roger Fry’s praise: “Mrs. Cameron’s photographs already bid fair to outlive the works of the artists who were her contemporaries.” (04:14)
• Cameron’s artistry transformed photography from mechanical art to expressive, nearly painterly images.

2. The Exotic, Eccentric Pattle Sisters (06:10–14:08)

• Born in East India Company Calcutta: Anglo-Indian (Bengali, French, English) heritage.

Virginia Woolf’s description:
“No one could restrain the Pattles but themselves... half-French, half-English, they were all excitable, unconventional, extreme in one form or another. All of a distinguished presence, tall, impressive and gifted, with a curious mixture of shrewdness and romance.” (10:50)

• Sisters celebrated their Indian roots:
  • Wore Indian clothes, conversed in Hindustani, famous for lobster curries, wore traditional bangles and Kashmiri shawls even in buttoned-up Victorian London (11:56–13:13).
  • Prefigured and possibly influenced Pre-Raphaelite bohemian fashion.

Notable family lore (Rum-filled coffin):

• Their father, James Pattle, infamous “biggest liar in India,” is said to have died in Calcutta, requested to be shipped home in a barrel of rum. An explosive, darkly humorous saga (07:26–10:03).
  Emily Burns: “Virginia Woolf ascribed to the ethos of don’t let the truth get in the way of a good story.” (10:03)

3. Sisterhood & Social Circles (14:00–19:48)

• The seven sisters' individual stories, connections to Indian and English elite, and their influence:
  • Sarah Pattle: Married Henry Toby Prinsep, connected to iconic Indian and linguistic breakthroughs.
  • Mia Pattle: Grandmother to Virginia Woolf and Vanessa Bell; mother-daughter modeling for Cameron's iconic photos.
• Little Holland House: Bohemian family base in London, salon for India returnees, Pre-Raphaelite artists, and visiting celebrities.

4. Little Holland House – Victorian Bohemia (26:04–30:33)

• Virginia Woolf’s evocative vision: “Tea tables and great bowls of strawberries and cream are scattered about the lawn… presided over by the lovely sisters… They sit enthroned and talk with foreign emphatic gestures to the eminent men… rulers of India, statesmen, poets and painters.” (24:39)
• Egalitarian, cosmopolitan atmosphere—class lines blurred; artistic collaboration flourished.
• The sisters played key roles as muses, models, patrons, and conveners.

Memorable anecdote:
Julia Margaret Cameron accosts a priest on the street, “You must be my Galahad!” Eventually, he becomes Cardinal Vaughan (28:04–28:38).

5. The Artistic Practice of Julia Margaret Cameron (31:34–41:55)

• First camera arrives (Dec 1863): Immediately obsessed, Cameron throws herself into photography.
• The challenge and artistry:
  • Complex, laborious wet-plate process; huge glass negatives; makeshift coal-shed darkroom (“she was always covered in chemicals… if you walked past Dimbola you could get wafts of chemicals through the bushes” - 33:54).
  • Embraced expressive “out-of-focus” effects, seeking “beauty” and atmosphere:
    Cameron’s son: “She always acted according to her instinct. If the image… looked stronger, more charismatic, out of focus, she… reproduced it.” (33:54)
  • Rejected retouching: “I am the only photographer who always issues untouched photographs. And artists… value my photographs.” (39:07–40:10)
  • Subjected even celebrities and friends to grueling sittings (“Tennyson called them her victims” - 36:20); exposure times of several minutes.
• Artistic ambition: Drew inspiration from Old Masters, understood advanced lighting and composition—“thinking about her photographs,” even radical cropping and symbolism.
• Corresponded with and was mentored by painter GF Watts; exchanged artistic advice and exchanges of prints.
• Prolific letter-writer; sadly, many letters burned upon her death (41:16–42:22).

6. The Final Years: Ceylon and Legacy (42:42–47:47)

• When family fortunes dwindled, the Camerons emigrated to Ceylon (Sri Lanka).
  Memorable image: They traveled with a cow, photographic equipment, and two coffins—coffins filled with glass and china (43:08).
• Julia continued photography in challenging colonial conditions, portraying Tamil plantation workers with the same artistry she bestowed on England’s greats.
• Few Sri Lankan works survive—many thought lost; stories persist of missing collections in Colombo (44:09).
• Julia’s personality undimmed: Shared her possessions, imposed photographic sittings on all comers, dressed them in tinsel and coconut branches (45:15–45:36).
• Death in 1879, Ceylon—last word reputed to be “Beautiful” (46:25).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Julia’s artistry:
  “She’s not necessarily a household name but among artists and photographers she certainly is… a pioneer of photography.” – Emily Burns (03:09)

• On Pattle family mythmaking:
  “Virginia Woolf ascribed to the ethos of don’t let the truth get in the way of a good story.” – Emily Burns (10:03)

• On Anglo-Indian pride:
  “Despite this being… the height of Victorian racism… all of the sisters celebrated their Indianness… serving Indian food… wearing Kashmiri shawls… chattering in Hindustani.” – William Dalrymple (11:56)

• On the creative practice:
  “She approached [photography] like a professional… but her dark room was a coal shed… She did it her way.” – Emily Burns (33:54–35:29)

• About her social salon:
  “There was a kind of oddly classless atmosphere… they’d grown up outside the English class system… mixing Tennyson with the cleaning lady, or stray Italian waiter.” – William Dalrymple (29:19)

• On her legacy:
  “After a 10 day illness she died on January 26th… on her deathbed Cameron looked out of her window… and uttered one last word: Beautiful.” – William Dalrymple (46:25)

Important Timestamps

• Julia Margaret’s introduction and importance: 03:09–04:28
• The “rum-filled coffin” story: 07:26–10:03
• Virginia Woolf on the Pattle sisters: 10:50
• Their embrace of Indianness in Victorian England: 11:56–13:13
• Little Holland House and the creative salon: 24:39–27:41
• Cameron’s photography practice and innovations: 31:34–41:33
• Move to Ceylon and the later years: 42:42–47:47

Summary Flow & Relevance

This episode paints a vivid, almost cinematic picture of a group of sisters who, through their wit, charm, and lack of respect for convention, shaped the worlds of art, literature, and Anglo-Indian society in 19th-century Britain. Listeners come away understanding Julia Margaret Cameron’s lasting influence on photography, the global hybridity of the Pattle family, and how their rebellion against Victorian norms continues to inspire. Woven with personal family stories, broader imperial context, and sharp insight into art history, this entertaining account is a celebration of unconventional women and the creative networks they forged under empire.

Highly recommended for anyone interested in art, British-Indian history, the Victorian era, or the bohemian counter-cultures that often flourished under the shadow of empire.

Visit & Further Reading:

• Exhibition: “Women of the Patel Sisters” at Watts Gallery, Guildford (open until May 2026)
• Catalog: Edited by Emily Burns (with essay by William Dalrymple)
• Julia Margaret Cameron Museum at Dimbola Lodge, Isle of Wight

Episode Credits:

• Host: William Dalrymple
• Guest: Emily Burns
• Produced by Goalhanger
• Empire Club for bonus content: www.empirepoduk.com