Anne Isabella Thackeray Ritchie
Encyclopedia
Anne Isabella, Lady Ritchie, née Thackeray (9 June 1837 – 26 February 1919) was an English
writer. She was the eldest daughter of William Makepeace Thackeray
.
, the eldest daughter of William Makepeace Thackeray
and his wife Isabella Gethin Shawe (1816–1893). She had two younger sisters: Jane, born in 1839, who died at eight months, and Harriet Marian (1840–1875), who married Leslie Stephen
in 1869. Anne, whose father called her "Anny", spent her childhood in France
and England
.
She married her cousin Richmond Ritchie
in 1877.
Several works followed:
In other writings, she peculiarly used old folk stories
to depict modern situations and occurrences, such as Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella and Little Red Riding Hood.
She also published the following novels:
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
writer. She was the eldest daughter of William Makepeace Thackeray
William Makepeace Thackeray
William Makepeace Thackeray was an English novelist of the 19th century. He was famous for his satirical works, particularly Vanity Fair, a panoramic portrait of English society.-Biography:...
.
Life
Anne Isabella Thackeray 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...
, the eldest daughter of William Makepeace Thackeray
William Makepeace Thackeray
William Makepeace Thackeray was an English novelist of the 19th century. He was famous for his satirical works, particularly Vanity Fair, a panoramic portrait of English society.-Biography:...
and his wife Isabella Gethin Shawe (1816–1893). She had two younger sisters: Jane, born in 1839, who died at eight months, and Harriet Marian (1840–1875), who married Leslie Stephen
Leslie Stephen
Sir Leslie Stephen, KCB was an English author, critic and mountaineer, and the father of Virginia Woolf and Vanessa Bell.-Life:...
in 1869. Anne, whose father called her "Anny", spent her childhood in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and England
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...
.
She married her cousin Richmond Ritchie
Richmond Ritchie
Sir Richmond Thackeray Willougby Ritchie was an Indian-born British civil servant who spent most of his working life at the India Office, reaching the post of Permanent Under-Secretary of State for India....
in 1877.
Literary career
In 1863, Anne Isabella published The story of Elizabeth with immediate success.Several works followed:
- To Esther, and Other Sketches (1869)
- The Village on the Cliff
- Old Kensington
- Tailors and Spinsters, and Other Essays
- Bluebeard's Keys, and Other Stories
- Five Old Friends
In other writings, she peculiarly used old folk stories
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
to depict modern situations and occurrences, such as Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella and Little Red Riding Hood.
She also published the following novels:
- Miss Angel (1875)
- Miss Williamson's Divagations (1881)
- Mrs. Dymond (1885)
- A Book of Sibyls: Mrs. Barbauld, Mrs. Opie, Miss Edgeworth, Miss Austen(1883)
- The biography Madame de Sévigné (1881)
- The semi-autobiographical novella 'From An Island' (1877)
Further reading
- "Introduction" by Anne Thackeray Ritchie in Our Village, fully and openly available online in the Baldwin Library of Historical Children's Literature Digital Collection