Esther Johnson was an Englishwoman known to have been a close friend of Jonathan Swift, known as "Stella". Whether or not she and Swift were secretly married, and if so why the marriage was never made public, is a subject of debate.
Esther Johnson, from an 1893 publication.
Vanessa, an imaginary portrait by John Everett Millais, 1868
Rococo cartouche dedicated to her in the south aisle of St. Patrick's Cathedral
Jonathan Swift was an Anglo-Irish satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer, poet, and Anglican cleric who became Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, hence his common sobriquet, "Dean Swift".
Portrait by Charles Jervas, 1710
The house in which Swift was born; 1865 illustration
Jonathan Swift in 1682, by Thomas Pooley. The artist had married into the Swift family.
Jonathan Swift (shown without wig) by Rupert Barber, 1745, National Portrait Gallery, London