Jean Elizabeth Leckie

From The Arthur Conan Doyle Encyclopedia
Jean Leckie (1906)

Jean Elizabeth Leckie (14 march 1874 - 27 june 1940) was the second wife of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. They married on 18 september 1907, but Conan Doyle was in love with her since 1897, a platonic love until the death of his first wife in 1906. They installed in Crowborough (Sussex), where she gave him 3 children (Denis in 1909, Adrian in 1910, Lena Jean in 1912).

In 1897, when Conan Doyle met her, she was a tall, thin and delicate woman, but also athletic and passionnate.

In his Memories and Adventures (1923), Arthur Conan Doyle wrote:

« On September 18, 1907, I married Miss Jean Leckie, the younger daughter of a Blackheath family whom I had known for years, and who was a dear friend of my mother and sister. There are some things which one feels too intimately to be able to express, and I can only say that the years have passed without one shadow coming to mar even for a moment the sunshine of my Indian summer which now deepens to a golden autumn. She and my three younger children with the kindly sympathy of my two elder ones have made my home an ideally happy one. My wife's people had a house at Crowborough, and there they had gone to reside. As they were very attached I thought it would be a happy arrangement not to separate them, so I bought a house close by, named "Windlesham." »



Photos of Jean Leckie then Jean Conan Doyle


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Jean and Arthur Conan Doyle with Douglas Fairbanks (2nd right) and his wife Mary Pickford (3rd right) (august 1923)

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Lena Jean, Adrian and Jean Conan Doyle during the Arthur Conan Doyle funeral (11 july 1930)

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Undated


Videos of Lady Conan Doyle


Biography

1874

  • 14.03.1874 : Birth of Jean Elizabeth Leckie. Daughter of James Blythe Leckie and Selina Leckie.

1881

  • 03.04.1881 : Living at The Avenue, Eltham, Kent. She had two brothers (Malcolm and Patrick) and a sister Sarah.
  • 05.04.1891 : Living at Glebe House, The Glebe, Lee. She had one more brother (Patrick).

1897

  • 15.03.1897 : Arthur Conan Doyle met Jean Leckie.
  • 26.11.1897 : Jean Leckie dined at Conan Doyle's house, at Undershaw.
  • 06.12.1897 : Jean Leckie had tea at Conan Doyle's house, at Undershaw and had a walk to Waggoner's Wells near Minstead with Innes Doyle, Arthur Conan Doyle and Miss Halahan.
  • 22.12.1897 : Jean Leckie went hunting at Elstead with Arthur Conan Doyle, Sidney Paget and Miss Halahan.

1898

  • 23.12.1898 : Jean Leckie went to the Conan Doyle's grand fancy-dress ball at the Hindhead Beacon Hotel. She was disguised as one of the Queens Maries.

1901

  • 31.03.1901 : Jean Leckie stayed at Ashdown Forest/Park Hotel, Forest Row, Sussex, with Arthur Conan Doyle and her mother.
  • july 1901 : Jean Leckie won a bronze medal as a vocalist in the London Academy of Music's public examination.

1902

1904

  • 31.03.1904 : The Leckies were at Undershaw.

1906

1907

  • 08.07.1907 : Jean Leckie had a diner with the Conan Doyles for the Conan Doyle's mother birthday.
  • 31.08.1907 : Jean Leckie and Arthur Conan Doyle visited Innes Doyle at Aldershot for Sports Day.
  • 18.09.1907 : Jean Leckie married Sir Arthur Conan Doyleand became the second Lady Conan Doyle. The wedding was held at 1.45 pm at St. Margaret's Church, Westminster. Innes Doyle was the best man. They were married by Cyril Angell. The reception was held at Whitehall Rooms in The Hotel Metropole at 2.45 pm. gathering 250 guests including Jerome K. Jerome, Bram Stoker, J. M. Barrie, George Newnes, Max Pemberton, Herbert Greenhough Smith and George Edalji.
  • 21.09.1907 : Jean and Arthur started their honeymoon in Paris at Hotel Regina. Then Berlin, Venice, Rome, Naples, Athens, Smyrna and Constantinople.

1909

  • 17.03.1909 : Birth of her first child Denis at Windlesham, Crowborough.

1910

  • 19.11.1910 : Birth of her second child Adrian at Windlesham, Crowborough.

1912

  • 21.12.1912 : Birth of her third child Lena Jean at Windlesham, Crowborough.

1920

  • 1920-1930 : Jean acted as a spiritualist medium.

1922

1923

  • march-august 1923 : Second tour to USA with Conan Doyle touring lecturing about spiritualism.

1928

1930

1940

  • 27.06.1940 : Death of Lady Jean Conan Doyle. She was buried at the same place than her husband at All Saints Church, Minstead, The New Forest, Crowborough.


Performers