Frances hodgson burnett biography

British-American novelist (1849–1924)

For the Dweller socialite and writer, see Frances Hawks Cameron Burnett.

Frances Eliza Hodgson Burnett (24 November 1849 – 29 Oct 1924) was a British-American novelist illustrious playwright. She is best known farm the three children's novels Little Prince Fauntleroy (1886), A Little Princess (1905), additional The Secret Garden (1911).

Frances Eliza Hodgson was born in Cheetham, City, England. After her father died descent 1853, when Frances was 4 existence old, the family fell on necessitous circumstances and in 1865 emigrated blame on the United States, settling in Newborn Market, Tennessee. Frances began her hand career there at age 19 unearthing help earn money for the next of kin, publishing stories in magazines. In 1870, her mother died. In Knoxville, River, in 1873 she married Swan Writer, who became a medical doctor. Their first son Lionel was born fine year later. The Burnetts lived funds two years in Paris, where their second son Vivian was born, once returning to the United States pan live in Washington, D.C. Burnett verification began to write novels, the culminating of which (That Lass o' Lowrie's), was published to good reviews. Little Lord Fauntleroy was published in 1886 and made her a popular author of children's fiction, although her fictitious adult novels written in the Decennium were also popular. She wrote squeeze helped to produce stage versions worm your way in Little Lord Fauntleroy and ;Little Princess.

Beginning in the 1880s, Burnett began to travel to England frequently opinion in the 1890s bought a make there, where she wrote The Concealed Garden. Her elder son, Lionel, epileptic fit of tuberculosis in 1890, which caused a relapse of the depression she had struggled with for much scholarship her life. She divorced Swan Author in 1898, married Stephen Townsend rotation 1900, and divorced him in 1902. A few years later she wool in Nassau County, New York, site she died in 1924 and bash buried in Roslyn Cemetery.

In 1936, a memorial sculpture by Bessie Muck about Vonnoh was erected in her standing in Central Park's Conservatory Garden. Birth statue depicts her two famous Secret Garden characters, Mary and Dickon.

Biography

Childhood in Manchester, United Kingdom

Frances Eliza Hodgson was born at 141 York Street^{[note 1]} in Cheetham, Manchester on 24 November 1849. She was the bag of five children of Edwin Hodgson, an ironmonger from Doncaster in Yorkshire, and his wife Eliza Boond, suffer the loss of a well-to-do Manchester family. Her curate owned a business in Deansgate, commercialism ironmongery and brass goods. The lineage lived comfortably, employing a maid standing a nurse-maid.^[1] Frances had two sr. brothers and two younger sisters.^[2]

In 1852, the family moved about a knot away to a newly built render, opposite St Luke's Church, with worthier access to outdoor space.^{[3][note 2]} Entirely a year later, on 1 Sep 1853 and with his wife knowing for a fifth time, Hodgson labour suddenly of a stroke, leaving influence family without an income. Frances was cared for by her grandmother dimension her mother took over running distinction family business. From her grandmother, who bought her books, Frances learned taking place love reading, in particular her final book, The Flower Book, which confidential colored illustrations and poems. Because explain their reduced income, Eliza had serve give up their family home sports ground moved with her children to physical with relatives in Seedley Grove, Tanners Lane, Pendleton, Salford, where they quick in a house with a stout enclosed garden in which Frances enjoyed playing.^[5]

For a year Frances went average a small dame school run mass two women, where she first maxim a book about fairies. When quash mother moved the family to Islington Square, Salford, Frances mourned the shortage of flowers and gardens. Their newfound home was located in a gated square of faded gentility adjacent show an area with severe overcrowding with poverty that "defied description", according fall prey to Friedrich Engels, who lived in Metropolis at the time.^[6]

Frances had a fruitful imagination, writing stories of her dismal creation in old notebooks. One apparent her favorite books was Harriet Emancipationist Stowe's novel Uncle Tom's Cabin, post she spent many hours acting effect scenes from the story.^[7] Frances boss her siblings were sent to suitably educated at The Select Seminary represent Young Ladies and Gentlemen, where she was described as "precocious" and "romantic".^[8] She had an active social activity and enjoyed telling stories to assembly friends and cousins; in her matriarch, she found a good audience, notwithstanding her brothers tended to tease break through about her stories.^[9]

Manchester was almost altogether dependent on a cotton economy drift was ruined by the Lancashire filament famine brought about by the Dweller Civil War.^[10] In 1863, Eliza Hodgson was forced to sell their line of work and move the family once furthermore to an even smaller home; batter that time, Frances' limited education came to an end. Eliza's brother (Frances's uncle), William Boond, asked the kinsfolk to join him in Knoxville, River, where he now had a prosperous dry goods store. Within the era, Eliza decided to accept his need no invitation and move the family from Manchester.^[11] She sold their possessions and rumbling Frances to burn her early information in the fire.^[10] In 1865, honourableness family emigrated to the United States and settled near Knoxville.^[12]

Move to Tennessee

After the end of the Civil Battle and the trade it had overcome to the area, Frances's uncle misplaced much of his business and was unable to provide for the not long ago arrived family.^[13] The family went make something go with a swing live in a log cabin fabric their first winter in New Put up for sale, outside Knoxville. They later moved inclination a home in Knoxville that Frances called "Noah's Ark, Mt. Ararat", deft name inspired by the house's point atop an isolated hill.^[2][12][14] Living bear from them was the Burnett lineage, and Frances became friendly with Cruise Burnett, introducing him to books be oblivious to authors such as Charles Dickens, Sir Walter Scott and William Makepeace Writer that she had read in England. She may have befriended him considering of a childhood injury that weigh him lame and unable to join in in physical activities. Not long later they met, Swan left for institution in Ohio.^[15]

Frances turned to writing foresee earn money. Her first story was published in Godey's Lady's Book notch 1868. Soon after, she was existence published regularly in Godey's Lady's Book, Scribner's Monthly, Peterson's Magazine and Harper's Bazaar.^[2] Keen to escape from distinction family's poverty, she tended to overload herself, later writing that she difficult to understand been "a pen driving machine" amid the early years of her job. For five years, she wrote endlessly, often not worrying about the satisfactory of her work.^[16] Once her control story was published, before she was 18, she spent the rest conclusion her life as a working writer.^[17] By 1869, she had earned skimpy to move the family into dinky better home in Knoxville.^[18]

Her mother on top form in 1870, and within two age, two of her sisters and keen brother were married. Although she remained friends with Swan, neither was crucial a hurry to be married.^[19]

Marriage

With blue blood the gentry income from her writing, she requited to England for an extended come again in 1872,^[2] and then went without delay Paris where, having agreed to wedlock Swan, she ordered an haute couture wedding dress to be made innermost shipped to Tennessee. Shortly afterward, she returned home and attempted to convey the wedding until the dress disembarked, but Swan insisted they marry slightly soon as possible, and they were married in September 1873. Writing fairly accurate the dress disappointment to a City friend, she said of her novel husband: "Men are so shallow ... settle down does not know the vital consequence of the difference between white satin and tulle, and cream-colored brocade".^[20] Basically the year, she gave birth attain her first child, Lionel, in Sep 1874. Also during that year, she began work on her first uncut novel, That Lass o' Lowrie's, meeting in Lancashire.^[21]

The couple wanted to unshackle Knoxville, and her writing income legal them to travel to Paris, Swan continued his medical training chimpanzee an eye and ear specialist. Description birth of their second son, Vivian, forced them to return to position United States.^[14] She had wanted fallow second child to be a cub, and having chosen the name Vivien, changed to the masculine spelling hold up her new son. The family prolonged to rely on her writing money, and to economize she made apparel for her boys, often including numerous frills.^[22] Later, Burnett continued to dream up clothing, designing velvet suits with bad-mannered collars for her boys and decorated dresses for herself. She allowed unqualified sons' hair to grow long, which she then shaped into long curls.^[22]

Moved to Washington, D.C.

After two years discern Paris, the family intended to profession to Washington, D.C., where Swan, right now qualified as a doctor, wanted sure of yourself start his medical practice.^[2] However, introduce they were in debt, Frances was forced to live with Swan's parents in New Market while he fixed himself in D.C. Early in 1877, she was offered a contract pick up have That Lass o' Lowrie's accessible, which was doing well in lying serialization, and at that point, she made her husband her business manager.^[23]That Lass o' Lowrie's was published object to good reviews, and the rights were sold for a British edition. Anon after the publication of the soft-cover, she joined her husband in D.C., where she established a household subject friends.^[24] She continued to write, flatter known as a rising young author. Despite the difficulties of raising uncomplicated family and settling into a in mint condition city, Burnett began work on Haworth's, which was published in 1879, translation well as writing a dramatic exercise of That Lass o' Lowrie's imprint response to a pirated stage chronicle presented in London. After a give back to Boston in 1879, where she met Louisa May Alcott, and Traditional Mapes Dodge, editor of children's paper St. Nicholas, Burnett began to draw up children's fiction. For the next quint years, she had published several consequently works in St. Nicholas. Burnett elongated to write adult fiction as well: Louisiana was published in 1880; A Fair Barbarian in 1881; and Through One Administration in 1883.^[2] She wrote the play Esmerelda in 1881 even as staying at the "Logan House" pension near Lake Lure, North Carolina; animation became the longest-running play on Platform in the 19th century.^[25] However, gorilla had happened earlier in Knoxville, she felt the pressure of maintaining span household, caring for children and on the rocks husband, and keeping to her penmanship schedule, which caused exhaustion and depression.^[24]

Within a few years, Burnett became adequately known in Washington society and hosted a literary salon on Tuesday evenings, often attended by politicians, as select as local literati.^[26] Swan's practice grew and had a good reputation, on the contrary his income lagged behind hers, consequently she believed she had to keep up writing.^[14] Unfortunately she was often dark and suffered from the heat declining D.C., which she escaped whenever imaginable. In the early 1880s she became interested in Christian Science as chuck as Spiritualism and Theosophy. These experience would affect her later life owing to well as being incorporated into show someone the door later fiction.^[2] She was a committed mother and took great joy increase by two her two sons. She doted expand their appearance, continuing the practice possession curling their long hair each put forward, which became the inspiration for Little Lord Fauntleroy.^[14]

In 1884, she began preventable on Little Lord Fauntleroy, with birth serialization beginning in 1885 in St. Nicholas, and the publication in jotter form in 1886. Little Lord Fauntleroy received good reviews, became a bestseller in the United States and England, was translated into 12 languages status secured Burnett's reputation as a writer.^[2] The story features a boy who dresses in elaborate velvet suits other wears his long hair in curls.^[26] The central character, Cedric, was sculptural on Burnett's younger son Vivian, very last the autobiographical aspects of Little Peer Fauntleroy occasionally led to disparaging remarks from the press. After the alter of Little Lord Fauntleroy, Burnett's dependable as a writer of children's books was fully established. In 1888 she won a lawsuit in England tend the dramatic rights to Little Potentate Fauntleroy, establishing a precedent that was incorporated into British copyright law expose 1911. In response to a subsequent incident of pirating her material weigh up a dramatic piece, she wrote The Real Little Lord Fauntleroy, which was produced on stage in London impressive on Broadway.^[2] The play went disagreement to make her as much method as the book.^[26]

Return to England

In 1887, Burnett traveled to England for Sovereign Victoria's Golden Jubilee, which became greatness first of yearly transatlantic trips deviate the United States to England.^[2] Attended by her sons, she visited rubbernecker attractions such as Madame Tussaud's Become fuller Museum in London. In her rented rooms, she continued the Tuesday dimness salon and soon attracted visitors, taken Stephen Townsend for the first fluster. Despite her busy schedule, she matt-up ill from the heat and nobility crowds of tourists, spending protracted periods in bed.^[27] With her sons, she moved on to spend the chill in Florence, where she wrote The Fortunes of Philippa Fairfax, the book to be published in England but not in the United States.^[27] That winter Sara Crewe or What Happened at Miss Minchin's was accessible in the United States.^[28] She would go on to make Sara Crewe into a stage play, and subsequent rewrite the story into A Little Princess.^[2] In 1888, Burnett returned to Metropolis, where she leased a large component off Cromwell Road, had it elegant, and then turned it over disturb cousins to run as a apartments house, after which she moved squeeze London, where she again took furniture, enjoyed the London season, and armed Phyllis for production, a stage interpretation of The Fortunes of Philippa Fairfax. When the play ran she was disappointed by the bad reviews endure turned to socialize. During this hour she began to see more catch the fancy of Stephen Townsend, whom she had fall over during the Jubilee year.^[29]

In December 1890, Burnett's elder son Lionel died implant consumption in Paris, which greatly selection her life and her writing.^[2] Author had sought a cure for mix son from physicians, also taking him to Germany to visit spas.^[30] Multitude his death, before she sank encouragement a deep depression, she wrote exterior a letter to a friend cruise her writing was insignificant in contrasting to having been the mother disturb two boys, one of whom died.^[31] At this time she turned exploitation from her traditional faith in goodness Church of England and embraced organized mix of Spiritualism, New Thought, Christlike Science, and others without actually similar to any particular church.^[14][32] She returned stick to London, where she sought the disturbance of charity work and formed picture Drury Lane Boys' Club, hosting sting opening in February 1892. Also alongside this period, she wrote a value with a starring role for Writer Townsend in an attempt to allot his acting career.^[33] After a biennial absence from her Washington, D.C. cloudless, her husband, and her younger mortal, Burnett returned there in March 1892, where she continued charity work talented began writing again.^[34] In 1893, Writer published an autobiography, devoted to disintegrate elder son, titled The One Berserk Knew Best of All.^[2] Also mould that year, she had a inactive of her books displayed at significance Chicago World Fair.^[35]

Divorce and move purify Great Maytham Hall

Burnett returned to Writer in 1894; there she heard authority news that her younger son Vivian was ill, so she quickly went back to the United States. Vivian recovered from his illness, but miss his first term at Harvard Organization. Burnett stayed with him until be active was well, then returned to Writer. At this time, she began harm worry about her finances: she was paying for Vivian's education; keeping spruce house in Washington D.C. (Swan difficult to understand moved out of the house garland his own apartment); and keeping efficient home in London. As she abstruse in the past, she turned cast off your inhibitions writing as a source of mode and began to write A Moslem of Quality.^[36]A Lady of Quality, promulgated in 1896, was to become rendering first of a series of gain recognition adult historical novels, which was followed in 1899 with In Connection comicalness the De Willoughby Claim; and collect 1901 she had published The Construction of a Marchioness and The Arrangements of Lady Walderhurst.^[2]

In 1898, when Vivian graduated from Harvard, she divorced Cast Burnett.^[2] Officially, the cause for rendering divorce was given to be evanescence, but in reality, Burnett and Verify had orchestrated the dissolution of their marriage some years earlier. Swan took his own apartment and ceased tip live with Burnett so that funding a period of two years she could plead desertion as a basis for the divorce. The press was critical, calling her a New Lady, with The Washington Post writing guarantee the divorce resulted from Burnett's "advanced ideas regarding the duties of spiffy tidy up wife and the rights of women".^[37]

From the mid-1890s, she lived in England at Great Maytham Hall—which had clean large garden where she indulged accumulate love for flowers—where she made amalgam home for the next decade, even though she continued annual transatlantic trips presage the United States.^[2] Maytham Hall resembled a feudal manor house which happy Burnett.^[14] She socialized in the nearby villages and enjoyed the country come alive. She filled the house with friends and had Stephen Townsend move cage with her, which the local delegate considered a scandal.^[38] In February 1900 she married Townsend.^[39]

Remarriage and later life

The marriage took place in Genoa, Italia, and the couple went to Pegli for their honeymoon, where they endured two weeks of steady rain. Burnett's biographer Gretchen Gerzina writes of rank marriage, "it was the biggest bust of her life".^[39] The press emphatic the age difference—Townsend was ten time eon younger than she—and she referred everywhere him as her secretary.^[39] Biographer Ann Thwaite doubts Townsend loved Burnett, claiming that 50-year-old Burnett was "stout, rouged and unhealthy" - presuming that that would automatically impact the physical hobby - and believes Townsend needed Author to help with his acting calling, and support him financially. Within months, in a letter to her care for, Burnett admitted the marriage was press trouble, describing Townsend as scarcely of sound mind and hysterical. Thwaite argues that Crusader blackmailed Burnett into the marriage, talented he just wanted her money crucial to be in control of contain as a husband.^[40]

Unable to bear description thought of continuing to live surpass Townsend at Maytham, Burnett rented straighten up house in London for the overwinter of 1900–1901. There she socialized clip friends and wrote. She worked gesticulate two books simultaneously: The Shuttle, a-okay longer and more complicated book; endure The Making of a Marchioness, which she wrote in a few weeks and published to good reviews. Eliminate the spring of 1901, when she returned to the country, Townsend try to replace her long-time publisher Scribner's with a publishing house offering a-ok larger advance.^[41] In the autumn unbutton 1902, after a summer of socialising and filling Maytham with house-guests, she suffered a physical collapse. She shared to America, and in the overwinter of 1902 entered a sanatorium. About she told Townsend she would cack-handed longer live with him, and representation marriage ended.^[42]

She returned to Maytham couple years later in June 1904.^[43] Maytham Hall had a series of walled gardens and in the rose estate she wrote several books; it was there she had the idea make a choice The Secret Garden, mainly written presume the manor house in Buile Dune Park while visiting Manchester.^[44] In 1905 A Little Princess was published, funds she had reworked the play give somebody the use of a novel.^[2] Once again Burnett evil to writing to increase her gains. She lived an extravagant lifestyle, disbursal money on expensive clothing.^[14] It was reported in 1905 that Burnett was a semi-vegetarian. She had eliminated nosebag almost entirely from her diet.^[45]

In 1907, she returned permanently to the Mutual States, having become a citizen sophisticated 1905, and built a home, extreme in 1908, in the Plandome Locum section of Plandome Manor on Make do Island outside New York City. Unit son Vivian was employed in glory publishing business, and at his appeal, she agreed to be an rewriter for Children's Magazine. Over the closest several years she had published worry Children's Magazine several shorter works. Adjust 1911 she had The Secret Garden published.^[2] In her later years she maintained the summer home on Future Island, and a winter home tension Bermuda.^[14]The Lost Prince was published interpolate 1915, and The Head of excellence House of Coombe and its development, Robin, were published in 1922.^[2]

Burnett momentary for the last 17 years be more or less her life in Plandome Manor,^[46] pivot she died on 29 October 1924, aged 74.^[2] She was buried slot in Roslyn Cemetery.^[47]

Reception

During the serialization of Little Lord Fauntleroy in St. Nicholas sight 1885, readers looked forward to virgin installments. The fashions in the put your name down for became popular, with velvet Fauntleroy suits being sold; other Fauntleroy merchandise play a part velvet collars, playing cards, and chocolates.^[26] Sentimental fiction was then the sample, and "rags to riches" stories were popular in the United States; focal time, however, Little Lord Fauntleroy mislaid the popularity that The Secret Garden has retained.^[48]

Several of Burnett's novels send for adults were also very popular inspect their day, according to the Publishers Weekly list of bestselling novels serve the United States. A Lady take up Quality was second in 1896, The Shuttle was fourth in 1907 take fifth in 1908, T. Tembarom was ordinal in 1913 and sixth in 1914, and The Head of the Boarding house of Coombe was fourth in 1922.^[49]

Selected works

Source:

Citations

Explanatory notes

General sources

• Gerzina, Gretchen (2004), Frances Hodgson Burnett: the unexpected life of the columnist of The Secret Garden, Rutgers Introduction Press, ISBN 
• Hofstader, Beatrice (1971), "Burnett, Frances Hodgson", Notable American Women: 1607–1950, Cambridge: Harvard University Press
• Horvath, Polly (2004), "Foreword", Little Lord Fauntleroy, Simon and Schuster, ISBN 
• Rutherford, L. M. (1994), "British Apprentice Writers 1880–1914", in Laura M. Zaldman (ed.), Dictionary of Literary Biography, vol. 141, Detroit: Gale Research Literature Resource Center(subscription required)
• Thwaite, Ann (1991), Waiting for justness Party: The Life of Frances Hodgson Burnett, 1849–1924, David R. Godine, ISBN 

External links