 Maria
Edgworth
English Novelist
1767-1849
Maria Edgeworth was a English
author in the late eighteenth and early
nineteenth centuries who not only wrote, but
worked vigorously for the relief of the
famine-stricken Irish peasants during 1845.
Growing up in the landed gentry of Ireland , she
used her experiences to write her novels about
the Irish.
Maria Edgworth was born in
Berkshire , England on January 1, 1767 the
daughter of Richard Lovell Edgworth, a noted
inventor and author. Her mother died when she
was only six years old and she was sent to
school in Derby when she was seven and remained
their until she was fourteen. Her father placed
much importance on his daughter’s education,
hoping she would be able to contribute something
of substance to the world. While attending
school Maria became a extraordinary story-teller
and writer. Her early attempts at fiction were a
bit melodramatic, but as she grew-up her
literary skills grew also.
When she was still a young teen,
Maria indicated her taste for literary pursuits
and never seemed to wish to be married. She
stayed on at home with her family, and her
father assisted in developing her talent. When
she was fifteen years old her father inherited
Edgeworthstown, the family estate in Ireland ,
where they moved. There in Ireland , under her
father’s direction, she pursued her studies,
formed habits of sharp observation, and
developed a cheerfulness that always made her
beloved in society. Maria acted as his chief
assistant and secretary in the management of his
estates and it was here that she gained the
intimate knowledge of Irish peasant life that
was the basis of many of her novels.
Maria also took on the
responsibility of educating her brothers and
sisters, writing stories for them that were
later compiled and published as “The Parents
Assistant”. Her father was very careful about
the stories she produced and she was compelled
to submit each story to him for his approval
before he would allow it to be read aloud to her
sibling.
Maria’s first publication was
“Letters for Literary Ladies” in 1795, which was
a plea for reform of woman’s education,
expressing views which closely corresponded to
those of her father. The first of her novels,
“Castle Rackrent”, was published in 1800 and was
an immediate success. It was published
anonymously without her father’s knowledge so as
to avoid his demanding editing. Following this
work was “Belinda”, “Popular Tales”, “Leonora”,
Tales of Fashionable Life”, “Patronage”, “Hanrrington”,
and “Ormond”. Her career continued without
interruption until 1817.
On the death of her father in
1817, her career as an author was interrupted
for a time. She did not resume her works of
fiction until she had expressed her affection
for her father by completing the memoirs which
he had begun of his own life. Not until 1834 was
her charming story of “Helen” published; and her
literary career ended with the child’s story of
“Orlandino”, which appeared in 1847.
The first signs of famine
appeared in Ireland in 1845 and Maria and her
family did what they could to alleviate the
suffering of the Irish peasants. They,
themselves, were not kept from the widespread
hunger and barely survived. Maria died at the
age of 82 on May 22, 1849 .
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