22 July: Rose Kennedy

On this date in 1890 Rose Kennedy, matriarch of the Kennedy family, mother of JFK was born. here are some things you might not know about her.

1. She was born in Boston on July 22, 1890, the eldest child of John F. (“Honey Fitz”) and Mary Josephine Hannon Fitzgerald. She was given the name Rose Elizabeth Fitzgerald.
2. She grew up with politics. Her father was a congressman and the Mayor of Boston. He once took his daughters to visit the White House where President William McKinley commented, "You're the prettiest girl who has entered the house," to her sister. Rose said later, "I knew right then that I would have to work hard to do something about myself."
3. She wanted to go to Wellesley College, but her father wouldn't let her. He insisted she went to the Convent of the Sacred Heart, in Boston, which didn't, at the time, issue degrees. Rose always regretted not going to Wellesley, but grew fond of the convent school and believed the religious education she received there became the foundation of her life.
4. At 24, she married Joseph P. Kennedy, who she'd met when the two families went on holiday together. The couple had nine children.
5. Rose had a system for keeping track of her brood. She used index cards to record important information about each of them - their Shoe sizes, dental treatment, eye tests, illnesses and weights. She was said to be a little obsessive about their weights. She said the cards weren't the product of American efficiency, but rather, "Kennedy desperation."
6. Her husband Joseph was a good provider for his family, but he had a number of affairs. At one point, Rose briefly left him and went back to her parents, but her father told her divorce wasn't an option. She went back to her husband and ignored his unfaithfulness, but the stress took a toll on her health, and she relied heavily on medication.
7. In 1951, she became only the sixth American woman to be given the rare title of papal countess, for her "exemplary motherhood and many charitable works."
8. She spoke several languages and could play the Piano. She dressed smartly and stylishly and was named the best-dressed woman in public life in the 1930s. In her free time she would swim, go for walks and play golf, up until she had a stroke in 1984, and became confined to a wheelchair.
9. She outlived four of her children, and a fifth, Rosemary, spent most of her adult life in a home for intellectually disabled people. She didn't talk about her grief much, but did once remark, "Wasn't there a book about Michelangelo called 'The Agony and the Ecstasy'? That's what my life has been."
10. She died at the age of 104 in 1995.

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