Josephine’s exuberant life

In a time when people would ride on carts drawn by horses, hers had to be drawn by four zebras. She was the type of woman who ensured her skin was soft to the touch thanks to milk baths in marble tubs.

This was the same kind of woman who had servants blow a bugle when she left her home to go shopping, the sort of woman who was a mistress to a king. Who was this flamboyant woman? Her name was Josephine Dale Lace and she made sure nothing about her was typical.

Born 1869, Josephine was a socialite whose beauty must have been unmatched as she had men, and especially one John Dale Lace, absolutely besotted by her. Born Josephine Cornelia Brink of the Karoo; she was nicknamed José. It is believed that she was proposed to by Sir Cecil John Rhodes, Prime Minister of the Cape at the time, and was mistress to King Edward VII of England. It is known that she was mistress to another man – Ernest Beckett, the Baron Grimthorpe, with whom she had a son, although she claimed it was King Edward's son.

Described as a bright, vivacious woman who was schooled in England, she used her talents, personality and beauty to attach herself to the politically and socially well connected. It is also said that she became the pet of Lady Robinson, wife of Sir Hercules Robinson, Governor of the Cape Colony. There was nothing ordinary about José – she married her husband, Colonel John Dale Lace, whom she met in London while pursuing an acting career, twice. The first time she refused to consummate the marriage because she wanted to finish the play she was acting in. There was also the fact that she still loved Ernest, so John, at her request, divorced her. The second time, on the rebound after Ernest refused to marry her, she and John married in Cape Town and he adopted her son. They, however, never had children of their own.

The Dale Laces were owners of one of Johannesburg's most prominent historic landmarks, the Parktown mansion 'Northwards', designed by British architect, Sir Herbert Baker in 1904. The 40-roomed mansion is now a national monument. It combined decorative Dutch and Flemish gables with Baker's beloved arts and crafts style. It is an imposing presence on the cliff, with its façade constructed of quartzite rock taken from the site. After John lost his fortune he and Josephine moved to Boschkop, which is now known as Bush Hill.

After living a life many would consider less than ordinary, Josephine died in 1937 when she was 68 years old.

(The Information in this article was taken from City of Johannesburg Website)