Editing Lady Byron (section)

==Marriage==
When George Gordon Byron proposed a second time, in September 1814, she did accept. The couple were married privately, and by special licence, at [[Seaham Hall]] in [[County Durham]] on 2 January 1815. The officiating clergyman was her cousin, the Rev. Thomas Noel of [[Kirkby Mallory]], illegitimate son of her uncle, [[Thomas Noel, 2nd Viscount Wentworth|Viscount Wentworth]].  The couple lived at [[Piccadilly Terrace]] in London.

Byron was then in extreme financial distress. He rejected payments offered for his written works, as he believed business was not appropriate for a gentleman, and gave copyrights to people who had helped him. He was having difficulty selling his estates at [[Newstead Abbey]] and [[Rochdale]] to clear his debt. During the summer of 1815 he began to unleash his anger and hostility on his wife. His moods were dark and he began to drink heavily. In [[Byron's letters|a letter]] to his half-sister, [[Augusta Leigh]], he stated his suspicions that his wife had broken the lock on his desk and searched it. Later that year he began an affair with [[Susan Boyce]], a London actress at Drury Lane Theatre, where he was a director.
[[File:Byron-74470485.jpg|thumb|A sketch of Lord and Lady Byron by Lord Byron's scorned ex-lover, Lady Catherine Lamb]]
Annabella became increasingly upset. In the late stages of pregnancy, she feared her husband might be going mad. In November 1815 she wrote to Augusta and told her of Byron's moods and behaviour. In answer to her sister-in-law's letter, Augusta travelled to the Byrons' home to assist. Upon her arrival she became the subject of Byron's wrath and believed him to be temporarily insane. On 10 December Annabella gave birth to the couple's only child, a daughter whom they named [[Ada Lovelace|Ada]]. Byron's despair seemed to increase.