British Culture - User contributions [en]

Catherine Parr

2010-07-12T17:47:07Z

Steffi:

11 November 1512–5 September 1548. Sixth wife of [[Henry VIII]] and Queen Consort of England and Ireland.

----

The daughter of Sir Thomas Parr of Kendall, a courtier of the royal household, Catherine was destined to be part of the highest of nobility. Her family was of good reputation and wealth and she was well educated.

At the age of seventeen her parents started negotiations for her marriage which ended in Catherine marrying Sir Edward Burgh who died only four years later. This left Catherine a childless widow apart from being orphaned since by that time her parents had died too.

She remarried rather quickly (in 1534). This time it was to John Neville, Lord Latimer who already had two children from a former marriage. He was rich and a substantial part of the royal household. After taking part of the Pilgrimage of Grace (an uprising of Catholics in the North) and therefore spending some time in the Tower (which he survived) he died in 1543.

Catherine, who had always been loyal to King Henry VIII, was left a wealthy childless widow. And not late after her husband’s death, King Henry offered to marry her.

Even though Catherine was in love with someone else - namely Thomas Seymour, brother of the late Queen Jane Seymour - she had to obey the King’s wishes and saw it as God’s will that she should become Queen. To her this was a mission she had to fulfill. Her aim was to complete the conversion of England to Reform. Catherine was a deeply religious Protestant although she was brought up Catholic. She even wrote a book promoting Protestant views in her later life.

She was proclaimed Queen on the day of her wedding (July 12, 1543), no coronation ceremony was held.
The relationship between her and Henry must have been a rather trustful one, as she was appointed Queen Regent in 1544 when Henry left the country in order to invade France.

When Henry died in 1548, Catherine – now a widow for the third time and still childless – was able to marry her former love Thomas Seymour.

She died shortly after giving birth to her first child on September 7, 1548.

== Sources ==

Starkey, David. Six Wives. The Queens of Henry VIII. London: Chattu & Windus, 2003

Encyclopædia Britannica --> "Catherine Parr." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica, 2010. Web. 12 July 2010 <http://www.search.eb.com/eb/article-9021818>.

Royal Family History --> http://www.britroyals.com/tudor.asp?id=catherine_parr

Catherine Parr

2010-07-12T11:26:22Z

Steffi:

Catherine Parr (11 November 1512 – 5 September 1548) was the sixth wife of Henry VIII and Queen Consort of England and Ireland.

(work in progress)

Catherine Parr

2010-07-12T11:26:05Z

Steffi: moved Katherine Parr to Catherine Parr: spelling

Katherine Parr (11 November 1512 – 5 September 1548) was the sixth wife of Henry VIII and Queen Consort of England and Ireland.

(work in progress)

Catherine Parr

2010-07-08T13:54:34Z

Steffi: Created page with 'Katherine Parr (11 November 1512 – 5 September 1548) was the sixth wife of Henry VIII and Queen Consort of England and Ireland. (work in progress)'

Katherine Parr (11 November 1512 – 5 September 1548) was the sixth wife of Henry VIII and Queen Consort of England and Ireland.

(work in progress)

State Opening of Parliament

2010-05-31T15:37:28Z

Steffi:

The State Opening of Parliament is an annual event which marks the beginning of the parliamentary session and states the programme and policies of the government in the Queen’s speech. The ceremony is conducted with a lot of pomp and is rich in symbolical meaning.

Usually it takes place in November. If there is a [[general election]], however, the ceremony will take place in May directly after that election. In this case the next Opening of Parliament will take place in November of the following year.

== The Queen’s Speech ==

All three constituent parts of the British Parliament – the Monarch, the H[[ouse of Lords]] and the [[House of Commons]] – participate in this ceremony and at last come together in the House of Lords to hear the Queen’s Speech. This speech is central to the event as it outlines the government’s policies and plans for the coming parliamentary session. It is normally about ten minutes long and written by the [[Prime Minister]]. The Queen only reads it out aloud. The last words always are “other measures will be laid before you” which allows the government to introduce other laws if required.

Afterwards a debate of the programme and policies takes place in both of the houses and regular business of Parliament is commenced.

== Symbols and Rituals ==
The ceremony of the State Opening of Parliament is highly symbolic and contains some rituals that mark it as an event of tradition and history.

Before the Monarch even starts his or her procession from [[Buckingham Palace]] to the [[Houses of Parliament]] the [[Yeomen of the Guard]] search the latter for bombs (especially the cellars) as a reminder of the [[Gunpowder Plot]] (a plan to blow up the Houses of Parliament with everyone in them on the opening of Parliament on 5 November 1605).
The monarch then sets out from Buckingham Palace in a horse-drawn stage coach, which is richly ornamented. This procession is watched by thousands of people on the streets and on television every year.

When the monarch arrives at the Houses of Parliament he /she is given the [[Imperial State Crown]] and his/her robe, and then enters the House of Lords. The current monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, is always accompanied by her husband, [[Prince Philip]] and has only ever missed two Openings of Parliament due to pregnancy since 1952.

Before the reading of the speech can start the Members of the House of Commons have to be summoned to the House of Lords. This ritual is called Black Rod. The so-called Gentlemen Usher of the Black Rod (or just “Black Rod”) goes up to the House of Commons where the door is closed in his face as a symbol of the Common’s independence. He then needs to knock on that door three times to be let in. Entering the House of Commons he bows a few times and then addresses the commons with the sentence: “Mr Speaker, The Queen commands this honourable House to attend Her Majesty immediately in the House of Peers”, after which the Members of the Commons slowly and while making jokes make their way to the House of Lords in order to listen to the Queen’s Speech.

== The Origins of the Opening of Parliament ==
The presence of the King during Parliament goes back to the middle ages. The pomp and rituals of this particular ceremony, however, are probably an inventiobn of Victorian times. Still, the porcedure of a speech made by the monarch, which is then to be discussed by the Houses of Commons and Lords in order to improve government was already in practice in the 14th century.

The excact origin of this ceremony and the date of its introduction is unknown.

== Sources ==
Homepage of the British Parliament --> http://www.parliament.uk/business/news/2010/05/state-opening-25-may-2010/

A video showing the Black Rod ritual --> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1bJ8nY2pcc

Riding, Christine: Pomp and Circumstance at Westminster --> http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/trail/church_state/westminster_later/pomp_and_westminster_01.shtml

BBC Political Correspondent Ben Wright about the Queen's Speech --> http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/8701771.stm

State Opening of Parliament

2010-05-31T15:33:49Z

Steffi:

The State Opening of Parliament is an annual event which marks the beginning of the parliamentary session and states the programme and policies of the government in the Queen’s speech. The ceremony is conducted with a lot of pomp and is rich in symbolical meaning.

Usually it takes place in November. If there is a general election, however, the ceremony will take place in May directly after that election. In this case the next Opening of Parliament will take place in November of the following year.

== The Queen’s Speech ==

All three constituent parts of the British Parliament – the Monarch, the House of Lords and the House of Commons – participate in this ceremony and at last come together in the House of Lords to hear the Queen’s Speech. This speech is central to the event as it outlines the government’s policies and plans for the coming parliamentary session. It is normally about ten minutes long and written by the Prime Minister. The Queen only reads it out aloud. The last words always are “other measures will be laid before you” which allows the government to introduce other laws if required.

Afterwards a debate of the programme and policies takes place in both of the houses and regular business of Parliament is commenced.

== Symbols and Rituals ==
The ceremony of the State Opening of Parliament is highly symbolic and contains some rituals that mark it as an event of tradition and history.

Before the Monarch even starts his or her procession from Buckingham Palace to the Houses of Parliament the Yeomen of the Guard search the latter for bombs (especially the cellars) as a reminder of the Gunpowder Plot (a plan to blow up the Houses of Parliament with everyone in them on the opening of Parliament on 5 November 1605).
The monarch then sets out from Buckingham Palace in a horse-drawn stage coach, which is richly ornamented. This procession is watched by thousands of people on the streets and on television every year.

When the monarch arrives at the Houses of Parliament he /she is given the Imperial State Crown and her robe, and then enters the House of Lords. The current monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, is always accompanied by her husband, Prince Philip and has only ever missed two Openings of Parliament due to pregnancy since 1952.

Before the reading of the speech can start the Members of the House of Commons have to be summoned to the House of Lords. This ritual is called Black Rod. The so-called Gentlemen Usher of the Black Rod (or just “Black Rod”) goes up to the House of Commons where the door is closed in his face as a symbol of the Common’s independence. He then needs to knock on that door three times to be let in. Entering the House of Commons he bows a few times and then addresses the commons with the sentence: “Mr Speaker, The Queen commands this honourable House to attend Her Majesty immediately in the House of Peers”, after which the Members of the Commons slowly and while making jokes make their way to the House of Lords in order to listen to the Queen’s Speech.

== The Origins of the Opening of Parliament ==
The presence of the King during Parliament goes back to the middle ages. The pomp and rituals of this particular ceremony, however, are probably an inventiobn of Victorian times. Still, the porcedure of a speech made by the monarch, which is then to be discussed by the Houses of Commons and Lords in order to improve government was already in practice in the 14th century.

The excact origin of this ceremony and the date of its introduction is unknown.

== Sources ==
A video on YouTube showing the Black Rod ritual --> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1bJ8nY2pcc
Riding, Christine: Pomp and Circumstance at Westminster --> http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/trail/church_state/westminster_later/pomp_and_westminster_01.shtml
Homepage of the British Parliament --> http://www.parliament.uk/business/news/2010/05/state-opening-25-may-2010/
BBC Political Correspondent Ben Wright about the Queen's Speech --> http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/8701771.stm

State Opening of Parliament

2010-05-31T15:26:45Z

Steffi:

The State Opening of Parliament is an annual event which marks the beginning of the parliamentary session and states the programme and policies of the government in the Queen’s speech. The ceremony is conducted with a lot of pomp and is rich in symbolical meaning.

Usually it takes place in November. If there is a general election, however, the ceremony will take place in May directly after that election. In this case the next Opening of Parliament will take place in November of the following year.

== The Queen’s Speech ==

All three constituent parts of the British Parliament – the Monarch, the House of Lords and the House of Commons – participate in this ceremony and at last come together in the House of Lords to hear the Queen’s Speech. This speech is central to the event as it outlines the government’s policies and plans for the coming parliamentary session. It is normally about ten minutes long and written by the Prime Minister. The Queen only reads it out aloud. The last words always are “other measures will be laid before you” which allows the government to introduce other laws if required.

Afterwards a debate of the programme and policies takes place in both of the houses and regular business of Parliament is commenced.

== Symbols and Rituals ==
The ceremony of the State Opening of Parliament is highly symbolic and contains some rituals that mark it as an event of tradition and history.

Before the Monarch even starts his or her procession from Buckingham Palace to the Houses of Parliament the Yeomen of the Guard search the latter for bombs (especially the cellars) as a reminder of the Gunpowder Plot (a plan to blow up the Houses of Parliament with everyone in them on the opening of Parliament on 5 November 1605).
The monarch then sets out from Buckingham Palace in a horse-drawn stage coach, which is richly ornamented. This procession is watched by thousands of people on the streets and on television every year.

When the monarch arrives at the Houses of Parliament he /she is given the Imperial State Crown and her robe, and then enters the House of Lords. The current monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, is always accompanied by her husband, Prince Philip and has only ever missed two Openings of Parliament due to pregnancy since 1952.

Before the reading of the speech can start the Members of the House of Commons have to be summoned to the House of Lords. This ritual is called Black Rod. The so-called Gentlemen Usher of the Black Rod (or just “Black Rod”) goes up to the House of Commons where the door is closed in his face as a symbol of the Common’s independence. He then needs to knock on that door three times to be let in. Entering the House of Commons he bows a few times and then addresses the commons with the sentence: “Mr Speaker, The Queen commands this honourable House to attend Her Majesty immediately in the House of Peers”, after which the Members of the Commons slowly and while making jokes make their way to the House of Lords in order to listen to the Queen’s Speech.

== The Origins of the Opening of Parliament ==
The presence of the King during Parliament goes back to the middle ages. The pomp and rituals of this particular ceremony, however, are probably an inventiobn of Victorian times. Still, the porcedure of a speech made by the monarch, which is then to be discussed by the Houses of Commons and Lords in order to improve government was already in practice in the 14th century.

The excact origin of this ceremony and the date of its introduction is unknown.

State Opening of Parliament

2010-05-25T11:39:10Z

Steffi: Created page with 'The State Opening of Parliament is an annual event which marks the beginning of the parliamentary session. The ceremony is conducted with a lot of pomp and is rich in symbolical …'

The State Opening of Parliament is an annual event which marks the beginning of the parliamentary session. The ceremony is conducted with a lot of pomp and is rich in symbolical meaning.

(work in progress)

Touching for the King's Evil

2010-05-11T10:40:31Z

Steffi:

Touching for the King’s Evil is a ceremony in which the monarch would touch people suffering from scrofula in order to heal them.
----

Scrofula is a tuberculous swelling of the lymph glands that was called “The King’s Evil” because it was widely believed that the touch of the monarch was able to heal this particular disease.
This belief dates from the time of [[Edward the Confessor]], who is said to have been the first monarch to heal people with the touch of his hands.

From King [[Henry I]] onwards England’s monarchs claimed to have Edward’s abilities as a reaction to their rival Capetian King’s pronouncement of having divine healing powers.

In England the ceremony used to be very formal. People suffering from scrofula would line up to be healed one after the other. The monarch would touch and stroke the sufferer’s throat while a cleric would read parts from the gospels (especially Mark 16: “They shall lay their hands on the sick and they shall recover”). Since the time of [[Henry VII ]] coins were handed out afterwards to be worn as a charm or amulet. The ceremony usually ended with a formal washing of hands.
One of the most dedicated and “the most successful miracle-working king” was [[Charles II]], who is said to have touched 90,000 people.

However, not all monarchs performed the ritual of Touching for the King’s Evil. [[James I]] disliked it. Queen [[Anne I]] reintroduced the procedure after some time and touched 200 sick people in 1712. One of them allegedly was the young [[Samuel Johnson]].

[[William III]] did not continue it. The [[Jacobites]] took this as a sign that the usurper did no longer have the power but that it went to the (in their opinion) rightful monarchs – the exiled [[Stuarts]].

The [[Hanoverians]] abandoned the ritual and it has not been performed since.

== Sources ==
Cannon,John. ''The Oxford Companion to British History''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997.

Cannon, John. ''The Kings and Queens of Britain''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001.

"king's evil." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica, 2010. Web. 10 May 2010 <http://www.search.eb.com/eb/article-9045541>.

Touching for the King's Evil

2010-05-11T10:39:57Z

Steffi:

Touching for the King’s Evil is a ceremony in which the monarch would touch people suffering from scrofula in order to heal them.
----

Scrofula is a tuberculous swelling of the lymph glands that was called “The King’s Evil” because it was widely believed that the touch of the monarch was able to heal this particular disease.
This belief dates from the time of [[Edward the Confessor]], who is said to have been the first monarch to heal people with the touch of his hands.

From King [[Henry I]] onwards England’s monarchs claimed to have Edward’s abilities as a reaction to their rival Capetian King’s pronouncement of having divine healing powers.

In England the ceremony used to be very formal. People suffering from scrofula would line up to be healed one after the other. The monarch would touch and stroke the sufferer’s throat while a cleric would read parts from the gospels (especially Mark 16: “They shall lay their hands on the sick and they shall recover”). Since the time of [[Henry VII ]] coins were handed out afterwards to be worn as a charm or amulet. The ceremony usually ended with a formal washing of hands.
One of the most dedicated and “the most successful miracle-working king” was [[Charles II]], who is said to have touched 90,000 people.

However, not all monarchs performed the ritual of Touching for the King’s Evil. [[James I]] disliked it.[[Queen Anne]] reintroduced the procedure after some time and touched 200 sick people in 1712. One of them allegedly was the young [[Samuel Johnson]].

[[William III]] did not continue it. The [[Jacobites]] took this as a sign that the usurper did no longer have the power but that it went to the (in their opinion) rightful monarchs – the exiled [[Stuarts]].

The [[Hanoverians]] abandoned the ritual and it has not been performed since.

== Sources ==
Cannon,John. ''The Oxford Companion to British History''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997.

Cannon, John. ''The Kings and Queens of Britain''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001.

"king's evil." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica, 2010. Web. 10 May 2010 <http://www.search.eb.com/eb/article-9045541>.

Touching for the King's Evil

2010-05-11T10:36:42Z

Steffi:

Touching for the King’s Evil is a ceremony in which the monarch would touch people suffering from scrofula in order to heal them.
----

Scrofula is a tuberculous swelling of the lymph glands that was called “The King’s Evil” because it was widely believed that the touch of the monarch was able to heal this particular disease.
This belief dates from the time of [[Edward the Confessor]], who is said to have been the first monarch to heal people with the touch of his hands.

From King [[Henry I]] onwards England’s monarchs claimed to have Edward’s abilities as a reaction to their rival Capetian King’s pronouncement of having divine healing powers.

In England the ceremony used to be very formal. People suffering from scrofula would line up to be healed one after the other. The monarch would touch and stroke the sufferer’s throat while a cleric would read parts from the gospels (especially Mark 16: “They shall lay their hands on the sick and they shall recover”). Since the time of [[Henry VII ]] coins were handed out afterwards to be worn as a charm or amulet. The ceremony usually ended with a formal washing of hands.
One of the most dedicated and “the most successful miracle-working king” was [[Charles II]], who is said to have touched 90,000 people.

However, not all monarchs performed the ritual of Touching for the King’s Evil. [[James I]] disliked it and [[William III]] did not continue it. The [[Jacobites]] took this as a sign that the usurper did no longer have the power but that it went to the (in their opinion) rightful monarchs – the exiled [[Stuarts]].

[[Queen Anne]] reintroduced the procedure and touched 200 sick people in 1712. One of them allegedly was the young [[Samuel Johnson]].

The [[Hanoverians]] abandoned the ritual and it has not been performed since.

== Sources ==
Cannon,John. ''The Oxford Companion to British History''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997.

Cannon, John. ''The Kings and Queens of Britain''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001.

"king's evil." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica, 2010. Web. 10 May 2010 <http://www.search.eb.com/eb/article-9045541>.

Touching for the King's Evil

2010-05-05T12:23:49Z

Steffi: Created page with 'A ceremony in which the monarch would touch people suffering from Scrofula in order to heal them. (work in progress)'

A ceremony in which the monarch would touch people suffering from Scrofula in order to heal them.

(work in progress)

Mary Shelley

2010-01-22T11:03:31Z

Steffi:

30 August 1797 - 1 February 1851
Mary Shelley, also known as Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley was a novelist best known as the author of [[Frankenstein]].

She was born in London 30 August 1797 as the daughter of [[Mary Wollstonecraft]] and [[William Godwin]].
Her first story ever “Mounseer Nongtonpaw” was published in 1808. She was eleven and her father the one who published it.

== Literary Life ==

The [[gothic novel]] [[Frankenstein; or, the modern Prometheus]] is her most famous work, up until today it has been the template for countless films, plays and stories. Her other works sometimes tend to be forgotten but they still were successful in her time.
She was associated with the so-called [[Satanic School]], headed by romantic writers as [[Lord Byron]] and [[Percy Bysshe Shelley]].
After her first novel Frankenstein, she wrote six more (see selected works). Shelley also acted as editor and publisher of her late husbands poetry and essays, and played a big part in the publishing of Lord Byrons biography.
Actually, biographies were her greatest passion and she kept writing biographical essays her whole life. She also frequently wrote short stories for the gift book "The Keepsake" for ten years (gift books were literary collections of poetry and prose).

== Marriage and Private Life ==

At the age of seventeen she eloped with well-known author and one of her father’s political followers Percs Bysshe Shelley. Together they traveled France, Germany and Switzerland.
About a year before they got married their first son was born in January 1816. He died three years later. In the next six years Shelley became pregnant three more times, only one child survived – Percy Florence Shelley (born November 1819).
When her husband drowned in July 1822 during their travels in Italy, her relationship to her only son became the most important and she kept travelling with him and his friends for almost the rest of her life.

In 1846 Mary Shelley started to be frequently ill, she was diagnosed with a brain tumour in 1850 and died one year later, aged 53, in London.

== Selected Works ==
* Frankenstein; or, the new Prometheus (first edition 1818)
* Mathilda (1819)
* Valperga; or, The Life and Adventures of Castruccio, Prince of Lucca (1823)
* The Last Man (1824)
* Posthumous Poems of Percy Bysshe Shelley (1824)
* The Fortunes of Perkin Warbeck (1830)
* Lodore (1835)
* Falkner (1837)
* The Poetical Works of Percy Bysshe Shelley (1839)

----
References

* Schor, Esther. The Cambridge Companion to Mary Shelley. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003
* "Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2010. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 22 Jan. 2010 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/539744/Mary-Wollstonecraft-Shelley>.

Mary Shelley

2010-01-22T10:57:42Z

Steffi: /* Literary Life */

Mary Shelley

2010-01-22T10:56:52Z

Steffi:

30 August 1797 - 1 February 1851
Mary Shelley, also known as Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley was a novelist best known as the author of [[Frankenstein]].

She was born in London 30 August 1797 as the daughter of [[Mary Wollstonecraft]] and [[William Godwin]].
Her first story ever “Mounseer Nongtonpaw” was published in 1808. She was eleven and her father the one who published it.

== Literary Life ==

The [[gothic novel]] [[Frankenstein; or, the modern Prometheus]] is her most famous work, up until today it has been the template for countless films, plays and stories. Her other works sometimes tend to be forgotten but they still were successful in her time.
She was associated with the so-called [[Satanic School]], headed by romantic writers as [[Byron]] and [[Percy Bysshe Shelley]].
After her first novel Frankenstein, she wrote six more (see selected works). Shelley also acted as editor and publisher of her late husbands poetry and essays, and played a big part in the publishing of Lord Byrons biography.
Actually, biographies were her greatest passion and she kept writing biographical essays her whole life. She also frequently wrote short stories for the gift book "The Keepsake" for ten years (gift books were literary collections of poetry and prose).

== Marriage and Private Life ==

At the age of seventeen she eloped with well-known author and one of her father’s political followers Percs Bysshe Shelley. Together they traveled France, Germany and Switzerland.
About a year before they got married their first son was born in January 1816. He died three years later. In the next six years Shelley became pregnant three more times, only one child survived – Percy Florence Shelley (born November 1819).
When her husband drowned in July 1822 during their travels in Italy, her relationship to her only son became the most important and she kept travelling with him and his friends for almost the rest of her life.

In 1846 Mary Shelley started to be frequently ill, she was diagnosed with a brain tumour in 1850 and died one year later, aged 53, in London.

== Selected Works ==
* Frankenstein; or, the new Prometheus (first edition 1818)
* Mathilda (1819)
* Valperga; or, The Life and Adventures of Castruccio, Prince of Lucca (1823)
* The Last Man (1824)
* Posthumous Poems of Percy Bysshe Shelley (1824)
* The Fortunes of Perkin Warbeck (1830)
* Lodore (1835)
* Falkner (1837)
* The Poetical Works of Percy Bysshe Shelley (1839)

Mary Shelley

2010-01-22T10:54:54Z

Steffi:

30 August 1797 - 1 February 1851
Mary Shelley, also known as Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley was a novelist best known as the author of Frankenstein.

She was born in London 30 August 1797 as the daughter of Mary Wollstonecraft and William Godwin.
Her first story ever “Mounseer Nongtonpaw” was published in 1808. She was eleven and her father the one who published it.

== Literary Life ==

The gothic novel Frankenstein; or, the modern Prometheus is her most famous work, up until today it has been the template for countless films, plays and stories. Her other works sometimes tend to be forgotten but they still were successful in her time.
She was associated with the so-called Satanic School, headed by romantic writers as Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley.
After her first novel Frankenstein, she wrote six more (see selected works). Shelley also acted as editor and publisher of her late husbands poetry and essays, and played a big part in the publishing of Lord Byrons biography.
Actually, biographies were her greatest passion and she kept writing biographical essays her whole life. She also frequently wrote short stories for the gift book "The Keepsake" for ten years (gift books were literary collections of poetry and prose).

== Marriage and Private Life ==

At the age of seventeen she eloped with well-known author and one of her father’s political followers Percs Bysshe Shelley. Together they traveled France, Germany and Switzerland.
About a year before they got married their first son was born in January 1816. He died three years later. In the next six years Shelley became pregnant three more times, only one child survived – Percy Florence Shelley (born November 1819).
When her husband drowned in July 1822 during their travels in Italy, her relationship to her only son became the most important and she kept travelling with him and his friends for almost the rest of her life.

In 1846 Mary Shelley started to be frequently ill, she was diagnosed with a brain tumour in 1850 and died one year later, aged 53, in London.

== Selected Works ==
* Frankenstein; or, the new Prometheus (first edition 1818)
* Mathilda (1819)
* Valperga; or, The Life and Adventures of Castruccio, Prince of Lucca (1823)
* The Last Man (1824)
* Posthumous Poems of Percy Bysshe Shelley (1824)
* The Fortunes of Perkin Warbeck (1830)
* Lodore (1835)
* Falkner (1837)
* The Poetical Works of Percy Bysshe Shelley (1839)

Mary Shelley

2010-01-19T12:22:59Z

Steffi: Created page with '1797 - 1851 Mary Shelley, also known as Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley was a novelist best known as the author of Frankenstein. (work in progress)'

1797 - 1851
Mary Shelley, also known as Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley was a novelist best known as the author of Frankenstein.

(work in progress)

Frances Burney

2009-12-16T08:22:29Z

Steffi:

Frances Burney, also known as Fanny Burney or Lady D’Arblay, was born in London 13 June 1752.

She was a novelist and playwright but is also famous for her posthumously published letters and diaries.

== Novelist ==

Frances Burney decided to be a novelist in a time when novels were the least prestigious kind of literature and she was aware of that. “She wrote her novels with a mixture of doubt and daring, and remained all her life ambivalent about novels and the practice of fiction” (Devlin 15).

Her early work ''[[Evelina]]'' (anonymously published in 1778) is considered a landmark in the development of the [[novel of manners]] as it comments on social life in England and illustrates Burney’s ability of “observing and recording society” (Encyclopaedia Britannica).

Although she never had a formal education she taught herself to read and spend a lot of time in her father’s library. She was an intelligent and talented woman but “publicly, she always maintained the demeanour appropriate to eighteenth-century expectations of women’s behaviour” (Simons 6).

However, all of her novels were a huge success in her time and she became very famous.

Her novels ''[[Cecilia]]'' and ''[[Camilla]]'' were even mentioned by [[Jane Austen]] in her novel ''[[Northanger Abbey]]''.

== Life at Court ==

From 1786 to 1791 Frances Burney also spent some time at the English court, as the Second Keeper of the Robes to [[Queen Charlotte]]. But court life did not agree with her as she was neither interested in royalty nor in fashion. In the end isolation from her friends and family and courtly routine exhausted her. During those five years she wrote her four tragedies, which were not as successful as her novels. She was allowed to leave court because her health suffered from it.

== Marriage and Life in France ==

In 1793 she married Alexandre d’Arblay, a “gentle and cultured” French émigré. It was a marriage based on love. They had one son. Only on the proceeds of her novel ''Camilla'' could they afford a proper lifestyle, as Alexandre did not have any money.
While on a visit to France she was forced to stay there for ten years by the renewed [[Napoleonic Wars]]. Her experience of living in a strange society all by herself while her husband was at war led her to write her last fictional work, the novel ''[[The Wanderer]]'', which was published upon her return to England in 1814.

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After her death on January 6 1840 her journals and letters were published in nine volumes. Up until today they have proven to be “source-books of material about people, places, and manners” of Frances Burney’s time (Adelstein, preface).

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References

Adelstein, Michael E.: ''Fanny Burney''. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1968.

Devlin, D.D.: ''The Novels and Journals of Fanny Burney''. Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1987.

Simons, Judy: ''Fanny Burney''. London: Macmillan, 1987.

Encyclopaedia Britannica http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/85638/Fanny-Burney
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Frances Burney

2009-12-03T14:17:08Z

Steffi:

Frances Burney, also known as Fanny Burney or Lady D’Arblay, was born in London 13 June 1752.

She was a novelist and playwright but is also famous for her posthumously published letters and diaries.

== Fanny, the novelist ==

Fanny Burney decided to be a novelist in a time when novels were the least prestigious kind of literature and she was aware of that. “She wrote her novels with a mixture of doubt and daring, and remained all her life ambivalent about novels and the practice of fiction” (Devlin, p.15).

Her early work [[Evelina]] (anonymously published in 1778) is considered a landmark in the development of the [[novel of manners]] as it comments on social life in England and illustrates Fanny’s ability of “observing and recording society”(Encyclopaedia Britannica).

Although she never had a formal education she taught herself to read and spend a lot of time in her father’s library. She was an intelligent and talented woman but “publicly, she always maintained the demeanour appropriate to eighteenth-century expectations of women’s behaviour” (Simons, p.6).

However, all of her novels were a huge success in her time and she became very famous.

Her novels [[Cecilia]] and [[Camilla]] were even mentioned by [[Jane Austen]] in her novel [[Northanger Abbey]].

== Life at Court ==

From 1786 to 1791 Frances also spend some time at the English court, as the Second Keeper of the Robes to [[Queen Charlotte]]. But court life did not agree with her as she was neither interested in royalty nor in fashion. In the end isolation from her friends and family and courtly routine exhausted her. During those five years she wrote her four tragedies, which were not as successful as her novels. She was allowed to leave court because her health suffered from it.

== Marriage and Life in France ==

In 1793 she married Alexandre d’Arblay, a “gentle and cultured” French émigré. It was a marriage based on love. They had one son. Only on the proceeds of her novel Camilla could they afford a proper lifestyle, as Alexandre did not have any money.
While on a visit to France she was forced to stay there for ten years by the renewed [[Napoleonic Wars]]. Her experience of living in a strange society all by herself while her husband was at war led her to write her last fictional work, the novel [[The Wanderer]], which was published upon her return to England in 1814.

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After her death on January 6 1840 her journals and letters were published in nine volumes. Up until today they have proven to be “source-books of material about people, places, and manners” of Fanny Burney’s time (Adelstein, preface).

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References

Adelstein, Michael E.: Fanny Burney. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1968

Devlin, D.D.: The Novels and Journals of Fanny Burney. Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1987

Simons, Judy: Fanny Burney. London: Macmillan, 1987

Encyclopaedia Britannica http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/85638/Fanny-Burney
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Frances Burney

2009-12-02T08:08:55Z

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work in progress

William Blake

2009-11-08T11:42:24Z

Steffi:

William Blake, still one of the most studied English poets, was born in London 28 November 1757.
Already talented as a young boy, he started an apprenticeship as an engraver and afterwards studied at the Royal Academy, where he exhibited his first pictures.

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Today Blake is most famous for his poetry; his most important works include “Songs of Innocence” and “Songs of Experience”. He also finished two epics: “Milton” and “Jerusalem”.

However, in his own times he was primarily known as an engraver and painter. He illustrated not only his own works but also those of other writers, e.g. Dante Alighieri’s “Divine Comedy” (1825) or Blake’s contemporary Mary Wollstonecraft’s “Original Stories from Real Life”.

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He was also in touch with a few prominent radicals of his time, e.g. Joseph Johnson and Thomas Paine. Blake is said to have been inspired by the American and French Revolutions and to have been a great admirer of those countries.(Ferber, p.xiii)
He also wrote a long poem called The French Revolution in which he describes the problems of French monarchy.

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William Blake’s most important technical invention was the art of relief etching, which he called “illuminated painting” and which he used for his famous illustrations.

He died on 12 August 1827.

== Sources ==
Eaves, Morris: ''The Cambridge companion to William Blake''. Cambridge University Press, 2004

Ferber, Michael: ''The Poetry of William Blake''. Penguin, 1992

Encyclopaedia Britannica
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/68793/William-Blake

William Blake

2009-11-04T11:17:22Z

Steffi: moved William blake to William Blake

work in progress

William Blake

2009-11-04T11:16:38Z

Steffi: Created page with 'work in progress'

work in progress