Rosa Belinda Coote is a fictional stock character who appears as a dominatrix and notional author in several works of Victorian erotica. Most notably, she is credited as the author of The Convent School, or Early Experiences of A Young Flagellant, a work actually penned by William Dugdale. She also appears in "Letters to a Lady Friend" and "Miss Coote's Confession," which were published in the Victorian magazine The Pearl. Despite her fictional nature, her name was used to lend an air of authority to these underground publications.\n\nThe character's surname is derived from General Sir Eyre Coote, a historical British Army officer who was disgraced in a flogging scandal in 1815; in her fictional backstory, this general is identified as her grandfather. Literary historians suggest the character of Rosa Coote was likely modeled after Theresa Berkley, a real-life nineteenth-century brothel keeper who operated in Soho during the 1830s.\n\nIn modern literature, the character was revived by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill in their comic book series The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. In this setting, she serves as the Headmistress of the Correctional Academy for Wayward Gentlewomen, continuing her association with Victorian-era literary themes.
