Victorian authors Archives

Charles Dickens: Interesting Facts and Information

James 59 Comments

Here are some interesting facts about the Victorian writer, Charles Dickens, the author of many classic novels, including, David Copperfield, Oliver Twist and Great Expectations. Often described as the ‘quintessential Victorian author’, Dickens’s stories are enjoyed just as much today as they were by his nineteenth century readership.

Charles Dickens was born on 7th February 1812 in Portsmouth.

Charles Dickens came from a poor family, but he was lucky enough to attend school.
Unfortunately, after his father was jailed for having ‘bad debts’, Charles Dickens was forced to leave school and start work in a blacking factory (a boot polish factory). He worked there for three years. The conditions were very poor and Charles Dickens suffered from loneliness.
Dickens started to write as a journalist. He contributed articles to journals called The Mirror of Parliament and The True Sun.
In 1833 he was employed as the parliamentary reporter for The Morning Chronicle newspaper. He also started to produce a series of sketches. He called himself Boz when he published these.
In 1836 Charles Dickens married Catherine Hogarth. She was the daughter of one of his editors, George Hogarth.
Later in 1836, a story by Dickens, The Pickwick Papers was published as a serial. This proved to be very popular and Dickens started to become famous.
Charles Dickens went on to produce a massive amount of material during his lifetime. He published fifteen novels, wrote hundreds of short stories and non-fiction pieces, lectured and performed both in England and in the United States, wrote plays, wrote thousands of letters and edited two journals.
After having ten children together, Charles Dickens and Catherine Hogarth separated in 1858. Dickens then had a relationship with Ellen Ternan, an actress.
Dickens was interested in the paranormal. He was a member of The Ghost Club.
In 1865 Charles Dickens was involved in the Staplehurst Rail Crash. His was the only first class carriage to avoid running off the tracks. Apparently, Dickens helped many of the wounded passengers before rescuers arrived.
Charles Dickens died on 9th June 1870. He suffered a stroke after completing a full day’s work on his novel in progress, Edwin Drood. He was buried in Poet’s Corner of Westminster Abbey.
Charles Dickens has appeared on the British £10 note.

Charles Dickens £10 note

The Novels of Charles Dickens

Here is a list of the novels written by Charles Dickens. Many of these were first published as a serial – the stories came out chapter by chapter (just like the episodes of a television series).

The Pickwick Papers
The Adventures of Oliver Twist
The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby
The Old Curiosity Shop
Barnaby Rudge: A Tale of the Riots of Eighty
A Christmas Carol
The Life and Adventures of Martin Chuzzlewit
The Chimes
The Cricket on the Hearth
The Battle of Life
Dombey and Son
The Haunted Man and the Ghost’s Bargain
David Copperfield
Bleak House
Hard Times: For These Times
Little Dorrit
A Tale of Two Cities
Great Expectations
Our Mutual Friend
The Mystery of Edwin Drood (never completed by Dickens)

Charles Dickens

Click here to visit the Primary Facts page on Famous Victorians.

Lewis Carroll Facts

James 28 Comments

Here are some interesting facts about Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland.

Lewis Carroll’s real name is Charles Dodgson. He used the name Lewis Carroll when he was writing his children’s books and composing his poems.

He was born in 1832 and died in 1898.
Lewis Carroll was a teacher of maths at Oxford University.
Lewis Carroll was one of eleven children. When he was growing up, he often spent time playing literary games with his brothers and sisters.
He was also very keen on drawing as a child.
Lewis Carroll often used to take the three daughters of his friend, Dean Liddell, for days out and boat trips on the river. It was on one of these trips that he first told the story that became Alice in Wonderland. The story was first published in 1865.
Carroll wrote another Alice book. This one was called Alice Through the Looking Glass and it was published in 1865.
As well as writing children’s books, Lewis Carroll also enjoyed writing poetry, and he was a keen letter writer.
Lewis Carroll produced several works about mathematics when he was working at Oxford University, and he invented the Carroll Diagram (sometimes known as the Lewis Carroll Square), a method of grouping data which is still taught in maths lessons to today.
Lewis Carroll loved puzzles and games. He was a very keen chess player, and there are lots of references to chess (and other games) in his books for children.

Click here to learn more about other famous Victorians.

Robert Louis Stevenson: Facts and Information

James 34 Comments

Robert Louis Stevenson was a famous Victorian author. He mainly wrote mystery and adventure stories, and his books are still read and enjoyed today.

Here are some facts about Robert Louis Stevenson:

Robert Louis Stevenson was born in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1850. His family were wealthy and, as a child, he was looked after by his nanny, Alison Cunningham.

When he was twelve, Robert Louis Stevenson, his parents and his nanny went on a five month holiday. They visited France, Switzerland, Belgium, Germany and Italy.
Robert Louis Stevenson was a sickly child. He was exceedingly thin and frail, and he suffered with coughs and fevers.
When he was just sixteen he wrote The Pentland Rising, a story based on an historical event. His father paid for 100 copies to be printed in pamphlet form.
Robert Louis Stevenson went to Edinburgh University. He started to study engineering, but soon switched to studying the law. He passed his legal exams, but in his heart he knew he wanted to be a writer.
In 1876 he went on a canoeing trip to Belgium and France with a friend. He kept a journal of his travels and used it to form the basis of his first book, An Inland Voyage.
In France, Stevenson met an American woman called Fanny Osbourne. He fell in love with her.
In 1879, Robert Louis Stevenson travelled all the way from Britain to America to see Fanny Osbourne, and they got married in 1880. They decided to live in Britain and set up home with Fanny’s twelve year old son (from her previous marriage), Lloyd.
In 1881 the Stevenson family went on holiday in Scotland. It rained for days on end, and to pass the time Lloyd made up an drew a map of an imaginary island. The map made Robert Louis Stevenson think of pirates and treasure, and inspired him to write Treasure Island.
Treasure island was first published as a book in 1883. It was very successful and turned Robert Louis Stevenson into a well-known writer.
Robert Louis Stevenson continued to experience health problems as an adult. He suffered with chest infections and was often so ill he couldn’t leave his bed.
In 1886 he wrote both The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and Kidnapped. Much of the writing was done from his sickbed.
From 1888 to 1890, the Stevenson family spent two years sailing around the Pacific Ocean islands. Robert Louis Stevenson decided to build a house on the island of Upolu, in Western Samoa. He carried on writing, but found it increasingly difficult as his illness become worse.
In December 1894, Robert Louis Stevenson died. He was only 44 years old. His body was buried on Mount Vaea, Upolu.