Peggy Abkhazi was born Marjorie Mabel Jane Carter in Shanghai, China. She and her mother returned to England in 1905. Her parents died shortly after, leaving her destitute, until she was adopted by acquaintances in Shanghai. Hereafter, she was known as Peggy Pemberton. They resided in England until her adoptive father died in 1918. Peggy traveled extensively with her widowed adoptive mother, during which times she met Nicholas Abkhazi, an exiled Georgian prince, in Paris. Circumstances separated them, and she returned to Shanghai with her adoptive mother. Mrs. Pemberton died in 1938, leaving Peggy financially independent. About this time, Peggy changed her name to Pemberton-Carter. She was interned by the Japanese, 1943-1945. This experience forms the basis of her book. "The Curious Cage", 1981. In 1946, she moved to Victoria, B.C., following friends who had retired there in 1939, and married Nicolas Abkhazi. Together they developed an internationally renowned rhododendron garden.