Julia Maitland
Encyclopedia
Julia Charlotte Maitland (née Barrett, 1808-1864), was a writer and traveller, and the great-niece of the novelists Fanny Burney and Sarah Burney
.
and their mother took them to France and then Italy, where they met up with Fanny's sister Sarah Burney. Sarah Burney wrote of them in her correspondence and regularly described Julia as a beauty. Julia made a full recovery in 1834.
Julia Barrett's many admirers included Fanny Burney's parson son Alexander d'Arblay, but she chose instead to marry a widower with children, James Thomas (died 1840) on 2 August 1836, to the disappointment of her family. Thomas took her to India, where he was a judge in the Madras
Presidency. They moved to Rajahmundry
in 1837, where they kept a boys' school. Her son James Cambridge Thomas was born on 3 February 1839. The ill-health of her daughter Henrietta Anne Thomas (born 1837) obliged her to return to England in December 1839.
After her husband's death in 1840, Julia Thomas was remarried to Charles Maitland (1815–1866), a writer and Anglican curate of Lyndhurst, Hampshire
in the New Forest
, on 5 November 1842. They had a daughter Julia Caroline (1843-1890). Julia Maitland died of tuberculosis at the home of her son-in-law, Rev. David Wauchope, at Stower Provost
, Dorset
, on 29 January 1864.
Later, Julia Maitland wrote three books for children, all of them popular in their day: Historical Acting Charades (1847), The Doll and her Friends, or, Memoirs of the Lady Seraphina (1852), and Cat and Dog, or, Memoirs of Puss and the Captain (1854). These were both humorous and didactic, promoting politeness, benevolence and generosity. She commented at the end of Cat and Dog, "I would propose Puss and Captain as an example of a new and better method of 'Living Like Cat and Dog'."
Sarah Burney
Sarah Harriet Burney was an English novelist, the daughter of musicologist and composer Charles Burney, and half-sister of the novelist and diarist Frances Burney .- Life :Sarah Burney's mother, Elizabeth Allen, was the second wife of...
.
Family
Julia Barrett was born on 21 October 1808, probably in Richmond, Surrey, the eldest of five children of Henry Barrett (1756–1843) and his wife, Charlotte, née Francis (1786–1870), the niece of Fanny Burney (Madame D'Arblay) who had first, rather drastically, edited her journals and letters. Julia was a favourite with the elderly Fanny, who remarked on her "very good sense, & a truly blyth juvenile love of humour." She and her sister Hetty (died 1833) suffered from tuberculosisTuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
and their mother took them to France and then Italy, where they met up with Fanny's sister Sarah Burney. Sarah Burney wrote of them in her correspondence and regularly described Julia as a beauty. Julia made a full recovery in 1834.
Julia Barrett's many admirers included Fanny Burney's parson son Alexander d'Arblay, but she chose instead to marry a widower with children, James Thomas (died 1840) on 2 August 1836, to the disappointment of her family. Thomas took her to India, where he was a judge in the Madras
Chennai
Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
Presidency. They moved to Rajahmundry
Rajahmundry
Rajahmundry is a city and municipal corporation of the Andhra Pradesh state in India. It is located east of the state capital, Hyderabad, on the banks of the River Godavari. Known as the Cultural Capital, Rajahmundry is noted for its intense Veda culture and intellect...
in 1837, where they kept a boys' school. Her son James Cambridge Thomas was born on 3 February 1839. The ill-health of her daughter Henrietta Anne Thomas (born 1837) obliged her to return to England in December 1839.
After her husband's death in 1840, Julia Thomas was remarried to Charles Maitland (1815–1866), a writer and Anglican curate of Lyndhurst, Hampshire
Lyndhurst, Hampshire
Lyndhurst is a village and civil parish in the New Forest, Hampshire, England. It is a popular tourist location with many independent shops, art galleries, cafés, restaurants, pubs and hotels. The nearest city is Southampton located around nine miles to the north-east...
in the New Forest
New Forest
The New Forest is an area of southern England which includes the largest remaining tracts of unenclosed pasture land, heathland and forest in the heavily-populated south east of England. It covers south-west Hampshire and extends into south-east Wiltshire....
, on 5 November 1842. They had a daughter Julia Caroline (1843-1890). Julia Maitland died of tuberculosis at the home of her son-in-law, Rev. David Wauchope, at Stower Provost
Stour Provost
Stour Provost is a village in the Blackmore Vale area of north Dorset, England, situated on the River Stour between Sturminster Newton and Gillingham. The village has a population of 560 . 5.6% of dwellings are second homes....
, Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, on 29 January 1864.
Writings and beliefs
Julia Maitland's first publication of note was her Letters from Madras, during the years 1836-1839, by a Lady published anonymously in 1843. The school she and her husband ran in Rajahmundry accepted boys of different castes and taught in both English and the local language ("Gentoo"). Controversially, it was strongly Christian. She also set up a multilingual reading room and assisted in starting other schools nearby. The book ends with a plea for a national system of education in India, as the route to modernization: " If every civilian up the country were to have a poor little school like ours, it would do something in time." She also made strong efforts to learn local languages, helped with famine relief, and investigated and condemned the South Indian slave trade.Later, Julia Maitland wrote three books for children, all of them popular in their day: Historical Acting Charades (1847), The Doll and her Friends, or, Memoirs of the Lady Seraphina (1852), and Cat and Dog, or, Memoirs of Puss and the Captain (1854). These were both humorous and didactic, promoting politeness, benevolence and generosity. She commented at the end of Cat and Dog, "I would propose Puss and Captain as an example of a new and better method of 'Living Like Cat and Dog'."