Maria Rosetti (born Marie Grant; 1819 – ) was a Guernsey born Wallachian and Romanian political activist, journalist, essayist, philanthropist and socialite. The sister of British diplomat Effingham Grant and wife of radical leader C. A. Rosetti, she played an active part in the Wallachian Revolution of 1848. She was also noted for her enduring friendships with the painter Constantin Daniel Rosenthal and with Pia Brătianu, the wife of National Liberal politician Ion Brătianu. The Rosettis were parents to eight sons: Mircea, Ion, Vintilă (journalist and writer), Horia, Elena-Maria, Toni, Floricel and Libertatea Sophia, all of whom were noted for their political activities. Biography Born to Captain Edward Grant, a ship-owning resident of Guernsey, and his Guernsey wife Marie Le Lacheur, Marie belonged to the Church of England. The Grants, who eventually settled in Plymouth, claimed lineage from the Scottish Clan Grant of Cannon, but this is uncertain. Life In 1837, her younger brother Effingham was appointed secretary of Robert Gilmour Colquhoun, the British consul in Wallachia; soon after, Mary herself arrived in Bucharest, where she began work as a tutor. It was then that she met Rosetti, Effingham Grant's close friend and a member of the Rosetti family of boyars, who fell in love with her. Mary Grant was employed by the family of Wallachian Militia Colonel Ioan Odobescu, and gave lessons to his children—including his son Alexandru, the future writer and politician. At the time, she was residing in the Bucharest area around Curtea Veche. Grant married C. A. Rosetti at her family's house in Plymouth, with an Anglican service (August 31, 1847); they remarried later in Vienna, through an Orthodox ceremony. The latter was attended by Rosetti's collaborators, Ştefan and Alexandru Golescu, who were the couple's godfathers. According to historian Paul Cernovodeanu, she met difficulty in integrating boyar society, but "[her] innate qualities, noble demeanor, intelligence and culture did not fail [...] to impose her". During the 1848 revolution, her husband played a prominent part in rallying the Bucharest populace to the radical cause, and sat on the Provisional Government. As Ottoman troops entered the country, crushing the rebellion and arresting its leaders, he was himself taken into Ottoman custody and, together with other prominent participants, transported by barge from Giurgiu, on his way to the Austrian-ruled Sviniţa, near the Danube port of Orschowa. With the Jewish Constantin Daniel Rosenthal, Maria followed the ships on shore; upon