Selina Davenport
Encyclopedia
Selina Davenport was an English
author of the Romantic period. She wrote 11 novels and was married to Richard Alfred Davenport.
, United Kingdom
on 27 July 1779, to Captain Charles Granville Wheler. At an early age, Selina met and later befriended Anna Maria
and Jane Porter
, who "both later to become successful writers in the early 1800s". Of the two sisters, Selina was closest to Jane and the two women remained friends until Porter died in 1850.
, and Theodora, who was born in 1806 in Putney
. Selina and Richard separated from each other around 1810. Their separation was considered quite "acrimonious," however, the couple were never officially divorced and neither of them ever remarried.
After the separation from her husband, which Davenport claimed had left her with next to nothing and no way to support herself, she began writing as a means of support for both herself and her two daughters.
, and her later by A. K. Newman & Company.
In addition to the eleven novels, Davenport supported her family financially in various business ventures, including running both a coffee house and a dance school.
Selina Davenport died, aged 80, on July 14, 1859 following years of increasing poverty and ill health. Her body is buried at St. John's Parish Church, in Knutsford
.
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...
author of the Romantic period. She wrote 11 novels and was married to Richard Alfred Davenport.
Early life
Selina Granville Wheler was born in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on 27 July 1779, to Captain Charles Granville Wheler. At an early age, Selina met and later befriended Anna Maria
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....
and Jane Porter
Jane Porter
Jane Porter was a Scottish 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 Spenser's The Faerie Queene while still a child...
, who "both later to become successful writers in the early 1800s". Of the two sisters, Selina was closest to Jane and the two women remained friends until Porter died in 1850.
Marriage and career
On September 6, 1800, at the age of 21, Selina Wheler married Richard Alfred Davenport, a scholar and writer. Richard and Selina had two daughters, Mary, born in 1803 in ChelseaChelsea, London
Chelsea is an area of West London, England, bounded to the south by the River Thames, where its frontage runs from Chelsea Bridge along the Chelsea Embankment, Cheyne Walk, Lots Road and Chelsea Harbour. Its eastern boundary was once defined by the River Westbourne, which is now in a pipe above...
, and Theodora, who was born in 1806 in Putney
Putney
Putney is a district in south-west London, England, located in the London Borough of Wandsworth. It is situated south-west of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London....
. Selina and Richard separated from each other around 1810. Their separation was considered quite "acrimonious," however, the couple were never officially divorced and neither of them ever remarried.
After the separation from her husband, which Davenport claimed had left her with next to nothing and no way to support herself, she began writing as a means of support for both herself and her two daughters.
Accomplishments and death
Selina Davenport wrote a total of eleven novels. Her early works were published by the Minerva PressMinerva Press
Minerva Press was a publishing house, noted for creating a lucrative market in sentimental and Gothic fiction in the late 18th century and early 19th century...
, and her later by A. K. Newman & Company.
In addition to the eleven novels, Davenport supported her family financially in various business ventures, including running both a coffee house and a dance school.
Selina Davenport died, aged 80, on July 14, 1859 following years of increasing poverty and ill health. Her body is buried at St. John's Parish Church, in Knutsford
Knutsford
Knutsford is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority area of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, in North West England...
.
Selected bibliography
- An Angel's Form and a Devil's Heart: a Novel (1818)
- Donald Monteith, the Hamdsomest Man of the Age: a Novel (1815)
- The Hypocrite: or, The Modern Janus; a Novel (1814)
- Italian Vengeance and English Forbearence: a Romance (1828)
- Leap Year: or, Woman's Privilege; a Novel (1817)
- The Original of the Miniature: a Novel (1816)
- Personation: a Novel (1834)
- Preference: a Novel (1824)
- The Queen's Page: a Romance (1831)
- The Sons of the Viscount. And the Daughters of the Earl: a Novel; Depicting Recent Scenes in Fashionable Life (1813)
- The Unchanged: a Novel (1832)
Further reading
- J.A.V. Chapple and Arthur Pollard, eds., The Letters of Mrs. Gaskell, Manchester University Press (1966) 1997.