Involvement in Scandal
In 1840 Lardner’s career received a major setback as a result of his involvement with Mary Spicer Heaviside, the wife of Captain Richard Heaviside, of the Dragoon Guards. Lardner ran off to Paris with Mrs Heaviside, pursued by her husband. When he caught up with them, Heaviside subjected Lardner to a flogging; he was unable to persuade his wife to return with him. Later that year he successfully sued Lardner for ‘criminal conversation’ (adultery) and received a judgment of £8,000. The Heavisides were divorced in 1841, and in 1846 Lardner was able to marry Mary Heaviside. The scandal caused by his affair with a married woman effectively ended his career in England, so Lardner and his wife remained in Paris until shortly before his death in 1859. He was able to maintain his career by lecturing in the United States between 1841 and 1844, which proved financially rewarding.
He died in Naples, Italy, and is buried in the Cimitero degli Inglesi there.
Read more about this topic: Dionysius Lardner
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