Hannah Chaplin (August 11, 1865 – August 28, 1928) was the mother of
Charlie ChaplinSir Charles Spencer Chaplin, KBE was an English comedic actor and film director. Chaplin became one of the most famous actors as well as a notable filmmaker, composer and musician in the early to mid Classical Hollywood era of American cinema.Chaplin acted in, directed, scripted, produced and...
. She was born
Hannah Harriett Hill in Camden Street,
WalworthWalworth can refer to:*England:**Walworth, London** Walworth, County Durham*United States:** Walworth County, South Dakota** Walworth County, Wisconsin** Walworth, New York** Walworth, Wisconsin*William Walworth...
,
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
. She became a
Music HallMusic hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment which was popular between 1850 and 1960. The term can refer to:# A particular form of variety entertainment involving a mixture of popular song, comedy and speciality acts...
entertainer and used the stage name 'Lily Harley'.
On March 16, 1885 she gave birth to Sydney John Hill, later
Sydney ChaplinSydney Chaplin , born as Sidney John Hawkes, was the elder half-brother of Sir Charlie Chaplin and the half-uncle of the actor Sydney Earle Chaplin , who was named after him.-Early life:...
. Later that year, on June 22, she married Charles Spencer Chaplin, a fellow Music Hall entertainer. Their son Charles was born in 1889.
She gave birth to
George Wheeler DrydenGeorge Wheeler Dryden was an English actor and film director, the son of Hannah Chaplin and music hall entertainer Leo Dryden and thus the half brother of Charles and Sydney Chaplin...
on August 31, 1892 in London, son of music hall entertainer
Leo DrydenGeorge Dryden Wheeler , was an English music hall 'vocal comic'. In 1892, he met Hannah Chaplin, mother of Charlie, and also a music hall performer. They had an affair, and a son, George Wheeler Dryden , leading to the breakdown of her marriage to Charles Chaplin, Sr...
.
Hannah Chaplin (August 11, 1865 – August 28, 1928) was the mother of
Charlie ChaplinSir Charles Spencer Chaplin, KBE was an English comedic actor and film director. Chaplin became one of the most famous actors as well as a notable filmmaker, composer and musician in the early to mid Classical Hollywood era of American cinema.Chaplin acted in, directed, scripted, produced and...
. She was born
Hannah Harriett Hill in Camden Street,
WalworthWalworth can refer to:*England:**Walworth, London** Walworth, County Durham*United States:** Walworth County, South Dakota** Walworth County, Wisconsin** Walworth, New York** Walworth, Wisconsin*William Walworth...
,
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
. She became a
Music HallMusic hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment which was popular between 1850 and 1960. The term can refer to:# A particular form of variety entertainment involving a mixture of popular song, comedy and speciality acts...
entertainer and used the stage name 'Lily Harley'.
On March 16, 1885 she gave birth to Sydney John Hill, later
Sydney ChaplinSydney Chaplin , born as Sidney John Hawkes, was the elder half-brother of Sir Charlie Chaplin and the half-uncle of the actor Sydney Earle Chaplin , who was named after him.-Early life:...
. Later that year, on June 22, she married Charles Spencer Chaplin, a fellow Music Hall entertainer. Their son Charles was born in 1889.
She gave birth to
George Wheeler DrydenGeorge Wheeler Dryden was an English actor and film director, the son of Hannah Chaplin and music hall entertainer Leo Dryden and thus the half brother of Charles and Sydney Chaplin...
on August 31, 1892 in London, son of music hall entertainer
Leo DrydenGeorge Dryden Wheeler , was an English music hall 'vocal comic'. In 1892, he met Hannah Chaplin, mother of Charlie, and also a music hall performer. They had an affair, and a son, George Wheeler Dryden , leading to the breakdown of her marriage to Charles Chaplin, Sr...
. George was therefore the half brother of Charles and Sydney Chaplin. As a result of her
adulterousAdultery is referred to as extramarital sex, philandery, or infidelity, but does not include fornication. The term "adultery" for many people carries a moral or religious association, while the term "extramarital sex" is morally or judgmentally neutral....
relationship with Dryden, Hannah and Charles Chaplin, Sr separated soon after George's birth. Hannah became responsible for taking care of Charlie and his older brother Sydney, as George went to live with his father.
It was when Hannah's voice failed during a performance at 'The Canteen', an
ArmyThe British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdoms of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England and Scotland and...
theatre at
AldershotAldershot is a town in the English county of Hampshire, located on heathland about 60 km southwest of London. The town is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council...
in
HampshireHampshire , sometimes historically Southamptonshire, Hamptonshire, , or the County of Southampton, is a county on the south coast of England. The county borders , Dorset, Wiltshire, Berkshire, Surrey and West Sussex...
in January 1894, that the young Charlie Chaplin, at the age of five, got his first taste of performing, when he went on as an unplanned replacement for his mother. This event was portrayed in the 1992 film
Chaplin.
She became increasingly mentally ill and had a breakdown in 1895. In June 1896, Hannah, with her two sons Charles and Sydney, entered
LambethLambeth is a place in the London Borough of Lambeth, although the area is now more commonly known as Waterloo, after the railway station whose viaduct separates the former centre of the village from the River Thames...
WorkhouseUnder the Poor Law systems of England and Wales, Scotland and Ireland a workhouse was a place where people who were unable to support themselves could go to live and work. The Oxford English Dictionary's earliest reference to a workhouse dates to 1652 in Exeter. There is, however, some written...
. Within a few weeks the boys were sent to Hanwell School for Orphans and Destitute Children.
In 1898 Hannah had a mental breakdown, and Charles and Sydney went to live for a time with Charles Sr. and his mistress. Young Charles first appeared at this time with the
Lancashire LadsThe Eight Lancashire Lads was a troupe of young male dancers who toured the music halls of Great Britain in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Their main type of dance was tap....
. From May 1903 to September 1912 Hannah was in the
Cane Hill Lunatic AsylumCane Hill was a psychiatric hospital in Coulsdon in the London Borough of Croydon. Built to handle patients unable to attend the Springfield and Brookwood Asylums, both of which were filled to capacity, it opened in 1882 as the Third Surrey County Lunatic Asylum. Following a gradual winding down...
in
SurreySurrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire, and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford...
. Charlie later wrote about a visit to see her in 1912:
"It was a depressing day, for she was not well. She had just got over an obstreperous phase of singing hymns, and had been confined to a padded room. The nurse had warned us of this beforehand. Sydney saw her, but I had not the courage, so I waited. He came back upset, and said that she had been given shock treatment of icy cold showers and that her face was quite blue. That made us decide to put her into a private institution - we could afford it now."
The brothers took Hannah out of Cane Hill and put her into Peckham House, a private asylum, but she was returned to Cane Hill Asylum in May 1915 when they defaulted on the 30 shillings a week payment. The Chaplin brothers brought her to
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
in 1921 where she was watched after until her death, in 1928. The Chaplin family held her funeral in the heart of Hollywood, at Hollywood's Memorial Cemetery, where Hannah Chaplin rests today, in a modest grave by the lake.
Her granddaughter,
Geraldine ChaplinGeraldine Leigh Chaplin is a Golden Globe and BAFTA Award-nominated actress and the daughter of Charlie Chaplin.-Personal life:...
, portrayed her in the 1992 film
Chaplin.
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