Edith Pargeter
Encyclopedia
Edith Mary Pargeter, OBE, BEM
(28 September 1913 – 14 October 1995), also known by her nom de plume
Ellis Peters, was a British author of works in many categories, especially history
and historical fiction
, and was also honoured for her translations of Czech
classics; she is probably best known for her murder mysteries, both historical and modern.
(Shropshire
, England
). Her father was a clerk at a local ironworks. She was educated at Dawley Church of England School and the old Coalbrookdale High School for Girls. She had Welsh ancestry, and many of her short stories and books (both fictional and non-fictional) are set in Wales
and its borderlands, and/or have Welsh protagonists.
During World War II
, she worked in an administrative role in the Women's Royal Naval Service
(the "Wrens")—and reached the rank of petty officer
by 1 January 1944 when she was awarded the British Empire Medal
(BEM) in the New Year Honours
.
In 1947 she visited Czechoslovakia
and became fascinated by the Czech language and culture. She became fluent in Czech and published award-winning translations of Czech poetry and prose into English.
She devoted the rest of her life to writing, both nonfiction and well-researched fiction. She never attended college but became a self-taught scholar in areas that interested her, especially Shropshire and Wales. Birmingham University gave her an honorary master's degree.
She wrote under a number of pseudonym
s; it was under the name Ellis Peters that she wrote the highly popular series of Brother Cadfael medieval mysteries, many of which were made into films for television. The Brother Cadfael Chronicles drew international attention to Shrewsbury and its history, and greatly increased tourism to the town.
She died in 1995 at the age of 82 following a stroke in Shrewsbury, her lifelong home. In 1997 a new stained glass window depicting St Benedict was installed in Shrewsbury Abbey and was dedicated to the memory of Edith Pargeter.
In 1993 she won the Cartier Diamond Dagger
, an annual award given by the Crime Writers' Association
of Great Britain to authors who have made an outstanding lifetime's contribution to the field of crime and mystery writing.
The Mystery Writers of America
gave her their Edgar Allan Poe award
in 1963 for Death and the Joyful Woman.
for the full list of books and stories, plus radio and TV adaptations.
British Empire Medal
The Medal of the Order of the British Empire for Meritorious Service, usually known as the British Empire Medal , is a British medal awarded for meritorious civil or military service worthy of recognition by the Crown...
(28 September 1913 – 14 October 1995), also known by her nom de plume
Pen name
A pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author. A pen name may be used to make the author's name more distinctive, to disguise his or her gender, to distance an author from some or all of his or her works, to protect the author from retribution for his or her...
Ellis Peters, was a British author of works in many categories, especially history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
and historical fiction
Historical fiction
Historical fiction tells a story that is set in the past. That setting is usually real and drawn from history, and often contains actual historical persons, but the principal characters tend to be fictional...
, and was also honoured for her translations of Czech
Czech literature
Czech literature is the literature written by Czechs or other inhabitants of the Czech state, mostly in the Czech language, although other languages like Old Church Slavonic, Latin or German have been also used, especially in the past. Modern authors from the Czech territory who wrote in other...
classics; she is probably best known for her murder mysteries, both historical and modern.
Personal
She was born in the village of HorsehayHorsehay
Horsehay is a village on the western outskirts of Dawley, which, along with several other towns and villages, now forms part of the new town of Telford in Shropshire, England. Horsehay lies in the Dawley Hamlets parish, and on the northern edge of the Ironbridge Gorge area.Its name is Anglo Saxon...
(Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
). Her father was a clerk at a local ironworks. She was educated at Dawley Church of England School and the old Coalbrookdale High School for Girls. She had Welsh ancestry, and many of her short stories and books (both fictional and non-fictional) are set in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and its borderlands, and/or have Welsh protagonists.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, she worked in an administrative role in the Women's Royal Naval Service
Women's Royal Naval Service
The Women's Royal Naval Service was the women's branch of the Royal Navy.Members included cooks, clerks, wireless telegraphists, radar plotters, weapons analysts, range assessors, electricians and air mechanics...
(the "Wrens")—and reached the rank of petty officer
Petty Officer
A petty officer is a non-commissioned officer in many navies and is given the NATO rank denotion OR-6. They are equal in rank to sergeant, British Army and Royal Air Force. A Petty Officer is superior in rank to Leading Rate and subordinate to Chief Petty Officer, in the case of the British Armed...
by 1 January 1944 when she was awarded the British Empire Medal
British Empire Medal
The Medal of the Order of the British Empire for Meritorious Service, usually known as the British Empire Medal , is a British medal awarded for meritorious civil or military service worthy of recognition by the Crown...
(BEM) in the New Year Honours
New Year Honours
The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, being a civic occasion on the New Year annually in which new members of most Commonwealth Realms honours are named. The awards are presented by the reigning monarch or head of state, currently Queen Elizabeth II...
.
In 1947 she visited Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
and became fascinated by the Czech language and culture. She became fluent in Czech and published award-winning translations of Czech poetry and prose into English.
She devoted the rest of her life to writing, both nonfiction and well-researched fiction. She never attended college but became a self-taught scholar in areas that interested her, especially Shropshire and Wales. Birmingham University gave her an honorary master's degree.
She wrote under a number of pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
s; it was under the name Ellis Peters that she wrote the highly popular series of Brother Cadfael medieval mysteries, many of which were made into films for television. The Brother Cadfael Chronicles drew international attention to Shrewsbury and its history, and greatly increased tourism to the town.
She died in 1995 at the age of 82 following a stroke in Shrewsbury, her lifelong home. In 1997 a new stained glass window depicting St Benedict was installed in Shrewsbury Abbey and was dedicated to the memory of Edith Pargeter.
Recognition
She was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) "for services to Literature" in the 1994 New Year Honours.In 1993 she won the Cartier Diamond Dagger
Cartier Diamond Dagger
The Cartier Diamond Dagger is an award given by the Crime Writers' Association of Great Britain to authors who have made an outstanding lifetime's contribution to the genre. The 2011 winner is Lindsey Davis.-Winners:* 1986 - Eric Ambler* 1987 - P. D...
, an annual award given by the Crime Writers' Association
Crime Writers' Association
The Crime Writers Association is a writers' association in the United Kingdom. Founded by John Creasey in 1953, it is currently chaired by Peter James and claims 450+ members....
of Great Britain to authors who have made an outstanding lifetime's contribution to the field of crime and mystery writing.
The Mystery Writers of America
Mystery Writers of America
Mystery Writers of America is an organization for mystery writers, based in New York.The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday....
gave her their Edgar Allan Poe award
Edgar Award
The Edgar Allan Poe Awards , named after Edgar Allan Poe, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America...
in 1963 for Death and the Joyful Woman.
The Heaven Tree Trilogy
- The Heaven Tree (1960)
- The Green Branch (1962) (1230 William De Braose, a Norman Marcher Lord was hanged for an affair with Joan, lady of Wales, the wife of Prince Llywelyn ab Iorwerth.)
- The Scarlet Seed (1963)
The Brothers of Gwynedd Quartet
Four novels about Llewelyn the Last:- Sunrise in the West (1974)
- The Dragon at Noonday (1975)
- The Hounds of Sunset (1976)
- Afterglow and Nightfall (1977)
Other
- Hortensius, Friend of Nero (1936)
- Iron-Bound (1936)
- The City Lies Four-Square (1939)
- Ordinary People (1941) (aka People of My Own)
- She Goes to War (1942)
- The Eighth Champion of Christendom (1945)
- "Reluctant Odyssey" (1946)
- "Warfare Accomplished" (1947)
- The Fair Young Phoenix (1948)
- By Firelight (1948) (US title: By This Strange Fire)
- The Coast of Bohemia (1950) (non-fiction: an account of a journey in CzechoslovakiaCzechoslovakiaCzechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
) - Lost Children (1951)
- Holiday With Violence (1952)
- Most Loving Mere Folly (1953)
- The Rough Magic (1953)
- The Soldier at the Door (1954)
- A Means of Grace (1956)
- The Assize of the Dying (1958) (short stories)
- A Bloody Field by Shrewsbury (1972) (US title: The Bloody Field)
- The Marriage of Meggotta (1979) (about Margaret de Burgh, daughter of Hubert de Burgh, 2nd earl of KentKentKent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, who saved Prince ArthurArthur I, Duke of BrittanyArthur I was Duke of Brittany between 1194 and 1202. He was the posthumous son of Geoffrey II, Duke of Brittany and Constance, Duchess of Brittany...
the first time King John tried to have him killed)
George Felse and Family
- Fallen into the Pit (1951)
- Death and the Joyful Woman (1961) (Edgar AwardEdgar AwardThe Edgar Allan Poe Awards , named after Edgar Allan Poe, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America...
for Best Novel, 1963) - Flight of a Witch (1964)
- A Nice Derangement of Epitaphs (1965) (US title: Who Lies Here?)
- The Piper on the Mountain (1966)
- Black is the Colour of my True Love's Heart (1967)
- The Grass-Widow's Tale (1968)
- The House of Green Turf (1969)
- Mourning Raga (1969)
- The Knocker on Death's Door (1970)
- Death to the Landlords! (1972)
- City of Gold and Shadows (1973)
- Rainbow's End (1978)
Brother Cadfael
See The Cadfael ChroniclesThe Cadfael Chronicles
The Cadfael Chronicles is a series of historical murder mysteries written by the linguist-scholar Edith Pargeter under the name "Ellis Peters"....
for the full list of books and stories, plus radio and TV adaptations.
Other
- Death Mask (1959)
- The Will and the Deed (1960) (US title: Where There's a Will)
- Funeral of Figaro (1962)
- The Horn of Roland (1974)
- Never Pick Up Hitchhikers! (1976)
As "Jolyon Carr"
- Murder in the Dispensary (1938)
- Freedom for Two (1939)
- Masters of the Parachute Mail (1940)
- Death Comes by Post (1940)
External resources
- Ellis Peters Books
- Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, the first Prince of Wales
- http://www.martinedwardsbooks.com/borderlands.htm/Borderlands: the crime fiction of Ellis Peters, by Martin Edwards (author)Martin Edwards (author)Kenneth Martin Edwards, commonly known as Martin Edwards is a British crime novelist, critic and solicitor.- Biography :...
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