Jane Porter
Encyclopedia
Jane Porter was a Scottish
historical novelist and dramatist.
's The Faerie Queene
while still a child. Tall and beautiful as she grew up, her grave and preoccupied air earned her the nickname 'La Penserosa', possibly a reference recalling the poem Il Penseroso by John Milton, meaning 'a brooding or melancholy person or personality'.
After her father's death, her family moved to Edinburgh, where Walter Scott
was a regular visitor. Some time afterward the family moved to London, where the sisters became acquainted with a number of literary women: Elizabeth Inchbald
, Anna Laetitia Barbauld
, Hannah More
, Elizabeth Hamilton
, Elizabeth Benger
and Mrs Champion de Crespigny
.
Her novel Thaddeus of Warsaw (1803) is one of the earliest examples of the historical novel, and it went through a dozen editions. Based on eye-witness accounts from Polish refugees of the doomed independence struggle of the 1790s, the book was praised by one of its characters, the great Polish patriot Kosciusko. The Scottish Chiefs (1810) a novel about William Wallace
, was also a success (the French version was banned by Napoleon), and it has remained popular with Scottish children. The Pastor's Fireside (1815), was a story about the later Stuarts. She wrote a number of novels, as well as two plays, which were less successful. Her play, Switzerland (1819), had Edmund Kean
and Charles Kemble
in the principal roles but it closed after one performance. A later play, Owen, Prince of Powys (1822), closed after three performances. Jane also contributed to various periodicals.
She also wrote Tales Round a Winter Hearth (1821), Coming Out (1828) and The Field of Forty Footsteps (1828) with her sister, Anna Maria Porter
(1780–1832).
A romance, Sir Edward Seaward's Diary (1831), purporting to be a record of actual circumstances, and edited by Jane, was written by her brother, Dr. William Ogilvie Porter, as letters in the University of Durham Porter archives show.
Jane and Anna Maria Porter, who both lived in London and Surrey later on, were sisters of Sir Robert Ker Porter
, the historical painter.
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
historical novelist and dramatist.
Life and work
Jane Porter was an avid reader. Said to rise at four in the morning in order to read and write, she read the whole of Edmund SpenserEdmund Spenser
Edmund Spenser was an English poet best known for The Faerie Queene, an epic poem and fantastical allegory celebrating the Tudor dynasty and Elizabeth I. He is recognised as one of the premier craftsmen of Modern English verse in its infancy, and one of the greatest poets in the English...
's The Faerie Queene
The Faerie Queene
The Faerie Queene is an incomplete English epic poem by Edmund Spenser. The first half was published in 1590, and a second installment was published in 1596. The Faerie Queene is notable for its form: it was the first work written in Spenserian stanza and is one of the longest poems in the English...
while still a child. Tall and beautiful as she grew up, her grave and preoccupied air earned her the nickname 'La Penserosa', possibly a reference recalling the poem Il Penseroso by John Milton, meaning 'a brooding or melancholy person or personality'.
After her father's death, her family moved to Edinburgh, where Walter Scott
Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet was a Scottish historical novelist, playwright, and poet, popular throughout much of the world during his time....
was a regular visitor. Some time afterward the family moved to London, where the sisters became acquainted with a number of literary women: Elizabeth Inchbald
Elizabeth Inchbald
Elizabeth Inchbald was an English novelist, actress, and dramatist.- Life :Born on 15 October 1753 at Standingfield, near Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, Elizabeth was the eighth of the nine children of John Simpson , a farmer, and his wife Mary, née Rushbrook. The family, like several others in the...
, Anna Laetitia Barbauld
Anna Laetitia Barbauld
Anna Laetitia Barbauld was a prominent English poet, essayist, literary critic, editor, and children's author.A "woman of letters" who published in multiple genres, Barbauld had a successful writing career at a time when female professional writers were rare...
, Hannah More
Hannah More
Hannah More was an English religious writer, and philanthropist. She can be said to have made three reputations in the course of her long life: as a poet and playwright in the circle of Johnson, Reynolds and Garrick, as a writer on moral and religious subjects, and as a practical...
, Elizabeth Hamilton
Elizabeth Hamilton
Elizabeth Hamilton was a British essayist, poet, satirist and novelist. Born in Belfast to Charles Hamilton , a Scottish merchant, and his wife Katherine Mackay , she lived most of her life in Scotland, dying in Harrogate in England after a short illness.Her first literary efforts were directed in...
, Elizabeth Benger
Elizabeth Benger
Elizabeth Ogilvy Benger was an English biographer, novelist and poet.-Background:...
and Mrs Champion de Crespigny
Champion de Crespigny Baronets
The Champion de Crespigny Baronetcy, of Champion Lodge, Camberwell, in the County of Surrey, was a title in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 31 October 1805 for Claude Champion de Crespigny. The second Baronet sat as Member of Parliament for Southampton. The fourth Baronet...
.
Her novel Thaddeus of Warsaw (1803) is one of the earliest examples of the historical novel, and it went through a dozen editions. Based on eye-witness accounts from Polish refugees of the doomed independence struggle of the 1790s, the book was praised by one of its characters, the great Polish patriot Kosciusko. The Scottish Chiefs (1810) a novel about William Wallace
William Wallace
Sir William Wallace was a Scottish knight and landowner who became one of the main leaders during the Wars of Scottish Independence....
, was also a success (the French version was banned by Napoleon), and it has remained popular with Scottish children. The Pastor's Fireside (1815), was a story about the later Stuarts. She wrote a number of novels, as well as two plays, which were less successful. Her play, Switzerland (1819), had Edmund Kean
Edmund Kean
Edmund Kean was an English actor, regarded in his time as the greatest ever.-Early life:Kean was born in London. His father was probably Edmund Kean, an architect’s clerk, and his mother was an actress, Anne Carey, daughter of the 18th century composer and playwright Henry Carey...
and Charles Kemble
Charles Kemble
Charles Kemble was a British actor.-Life:The youngest son of Roger Kemble, and younger brother of John Philip Kemble, Stephen Kemble and Sarah Siddons, he was born at Brecon, South Wales. Like John Philip, he was educated at Douai...
in the principal roles but it closed after one performance. A later play, Owen, Prince of Powys (1822), closed after three performances. Jane also contributed to various periodicals.
She also wrote Tales Round a Winter Hearth (1821), Coming Out (1828) and The Field of Forty Footsteps (1828) with her sister, Anna Maria Porter
Anna Maria Porter
Anna Maria Porter , poet, novelist and sister of Jane Porter, was born in the Bailey in Durham, the posthumous child of William Porter , who had served as an army surgeon for 23 years. He is buried in St Oswald's church, Durham....
(1780–1832).
A romance, Sir Edward Seaward's Diary (1831), purporting to be a record of actual circumstances, and edited by Jane, was written by her brother, Dr. William Ogilvie Porter, as letters in the University of Durham Porter archives show.
Jane and Anna Maria Porter, who both lived in London and Surrey later on, were sisters of Sir Robert Ker Porter
Robert Ker Porter
Robert Ker Porter , noted artist, author, diplomat and traveler. Known today for his accounts of his travels in Spain, Portugal and Russia, he also served as the British consul in Venezuela...
, the historical painter.
External links
- The Scottish Chiefs audiobook at the Internet Archives (Note:In this reading, some of the pronunciations of Scottish place-names are non-standard.)