Betsy Babbage
Born: 1760, Totnes Devon
Died: 1844
Elizabeth (Betsy) Babbage born, Elizabeth Plumleigh Teape married Bejamin Babbage in 1790 and gave birth to her only son Charles in 1791. Betsy was a constant source of support for Charles from his sickly childhood to his conflict with Prime Minister Robert Peel. Betsy was the model Victorian wife and mother, religious, loyal and a true lady. She came from well established Devon family, her father had been mayor of Totnes and the Teapes family vault still resides in Totnes church.
Betsy's dutiful and loving nature balanced the harsher qualities expressed by her husband Benjamin. When Benjamin snubbed his son for marrying beneath his status Betsy refused to comply, maintaining contact with Charles and her grandchildren. The letters Charles sends to his mother during this period starkly reflect the rift between the two men as he questions his mother how she can remain married to such a tyrant.
Betsy lived well into her eighties and remained the greatest advocate of her son's work and unlike her husband saw the potential of Charles' work beyond material concerns. In 1834 when funding for The Difference Engine began to grind to a halt Betsy wrote,
"My dear son, you have advanced so far in the accomplishment of of a great object, which is worthy of your ambition. You are capable of completing it. My advice is - pursue it even if it should oblige you to live on bread and cheese."
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