Oh, darn! I thought I had shared this already, but no, it was in that backlog of comments I wanted to make that accumulated while I was spending all my computer time on fic.
So--yes! It's our Andrew Mitchell, per the Algarotti dissertation writer:
Before taking up residence at St. James Palace with Hervey, Algarotti had stayed for a short time with Andrew Mitchell. Mitchell, together with Celsius and Folkes, had been responsible for nominating Algarotti for membership to the Royal Society in 1736.
Like Hervey, Mitchell was well-connected: he was the secretary to John Hay, Fourth Marquis of Tweeddale, who was at this time the Extraordinary Lord of Session of the Scottish Court of Session.
Mitchell (1708-1771) would go on to win a seat in the House of Commons in 1747. In 1753 he would be knighted and sent as ambassador to the court of Frederick the Great. [Mildred's note: he may have been knighted in 1753, I'm not sure, but he didn't arrive in Prussia until 1756.]
In the Algarotti section of our chronology, I had even put the following entry:
1739, March/April-May: Algarotti in London. Stays with Andrew Mitchell, Lord Hervey, Lord Baltimore.
(Lord Baltimore is the one in whose company he would meet Fritz at Rheinsberg. in September of 1739.)
What I didn't know is that "you will certainly be the tastiest dish for me (le meilleur plat pour moi]" and "I hope to embrace you in 4 or 5 days." Man, Algarotti gets around!
one wonders whether Algarotti as a subject was ever mentioned with Fritz, and if so, whether Bisset edited this out, because I don't recall the man ever being mentioned in what I've read...
One does wonder, because in that draft I composed back on June 8, I wrote:
Algarotti stayed with Andrew Mitchell in London in 1739! I had missed this on my first read-through of the dissertation. I'm sure that gave Fritz and Mitchell one more thing to talk about.
And yes, I do wonder if Bisset edited out some embracing and tasty dishes. :P I mean, if Fritz and d'Argens are happy to gossip about Émilie's sex life, Fritz and Mitchell chatting about their mutual friendly ex would definitely be a thing. Especially since Fritz was still eager to bring up Algarotti with Lucchesini long after Algarotti's death; when Mitchell is around, Fritz is still trying to think up ways to get his "we didn't break up, we're just temporarily separated, I swear" boyfriend to come back to Prussia once the war is over.
Re: Andrew Mitchell: Secret Algarotti Boyfriend?!
So--yes! It's our Andrew Mitchell, per the Algarotti dissertation writer:
Before taking up residence at St. James Palace with Hervey, Algarotti had stayed for a short time with Andrew Mitchell. Mitchell, together with Celsius and Folkes, had been responsible for nominating Algarotti for membership to the Royal Society in 1736.
Like Hervey, Mitchell was well-connected: he was the secretary to John Hay, Fourth Marquis of Tweeddale, who was at this time the Extraordinary Lord of Session of the Scottish Court of Session.
Mitchell (1708-1771) would go on to win a seat in the House of Commons in 1747. In 1753 he would be knighted and sent as ambassador to the court of Frederick the Great. [Mildred's note: he may have been knighted in 1753, I'm not sure, but he didn't arrive in Prussia until 1756.]
In the Algarotti section of our chronology, I had even put the following entry:
1739, March/April-May: Algarotti in London. Stays with Andrew Mitchell, Lord Hervey, Lord Baltimore.
(Lord Baltimore is the one in whose company he would meet Fritz at Rheinsberg. in September of 1739.)
What I didn't know is that "you will certainly be the tastiest dish for me (le meilleur plat pour moi]" and "I hope to embrace you in 4 or 5 days." Man, Algarotti gets around!
one wonders whether Algarotti as a subject was ever mentioned with Fritz, and if so, whether Bisset edited this out, because I don't recall the man ever being mentioned in what I've read...
One does wonder, because in that draft I composed back on June 8, I wrote:
Algarotti stayed with Andrew Mitchell in London in 1739! I had missed this on my first read-through of the dissertation. I'm sure that gave Fritz and Mitchell one more thing to talk about.
And yes, I do wonder if Bisset edited out some embracing and tasty dishes. :P I mean, if Fritz and d'Argens are happy to gossip about Émilie's sex life, Fritz and Mitchell chatting about their mutual friendly ex would definitely be a thing. Especially since Fritz was still eager to bring up Algarotti with Lucchesini long after Algarotti's death; when Mitchell is around, Fritz is still trying to think up ways to get his "we didn't break up, we're just temporarily separated, I swear" boyfriend to come back to Prussia once the war is over.