Elizabeth Strutt (1782–1867;[1] fl. 1805–1863[2]), also or previously known as Elizabeth Byron, was an English writer and traveller.[2] She was the wife of Jacob George Strutt and mother of Arthur John Strutt, and an acquaintance and critic of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, whom she describes as having written "two of the most absurd and the most unpleasing sonnets in the English language".[1][3] In the 1820s and 1830s she travelled in France and Switzerland, living for a time at Lausanne, and later with her husband and son moved to Rome.

Elizabeth Strutt
BornElizabeth Frost
1782
Died1867
Pen name
  • Elizabeth Byron
  • Mrs. Byron
  • Mrs. Strutt
PartnerJacob George Strutt
ChildrenArthur John Strutt

Life

edit

The dates of birth and death of Elizabeth Strutt are uncertain. It is likely that she was the Elizabeth Frost christened at Hull, now in the East Riding of Yorkshire, on 20 February 1783.[4] She was the sister of Charles Frost, Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, of Hull,[5] and daughter of Thomas Frost, solicitor, of Hull. She was awarded a Civil List pension on 18 June 1863, and so can not have died before that date.[4] Lewis gives 1782 for her birth and 1867 for her death.[1]

Her first three novels, Anti-Delphine (1806), Drelincourt and Rodalvi (1807) and The Borderers (1812) were published under the name "Mrs. Byron". At the time of publication of Genevieve, or the Orphan's Visit in 1818 she was "Mrs. Strutt". Until 1832 she and her husband Jacob George Strutt lived at Butterwick House in Hammersmith, where she "continued" the ladies' school of the Misses Attwood.[5][6]

Works

edit

The published works of Elizabeth Strutt include:

As Mrs. Byron

edit

As Elizabeth Strutt

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Arabella Barrett, Scott Lewis (editor) (2002). The letters of Elizabeth Barrett Browning to her sister Arabella: in two volumes. Waco, TX: Wedgestone Press. ISBN 9780911459296, pages 147–148.
  2. ^ a b Elizabeth Strutt. Oxford Biography Index Number 101045862. Accessed September 2011.
  3. ^ Elizabeth Strutt (1857). The feminine soul: its nature and attributes. With thoughts upon marriage, and friendly hints upon feminine duties. London: J.S. Hodson, pages 215–216.
  4. ^ a b Susan Brown, Patricia Clements, Isobel Grundy (editors) (2006). Elizabeth Strutt entry: Overview screen within Orlando: Women's Writing in the British Isles from the Beginnings to the Present. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Online. Accessed September 2011.
  5. ^ a b Thomas Faulkner (1839). The history and antiquities of the parish of Hammersmith, interspersed with biographical notices of illustrious and eminent persons, who have been born, or who have resided in the parish, during the three preceding centuries. London: Nichols & Son, page 303.
  6. ^ [n.a.] (1839). "Review of Faulkner's History of Hammersmith" in The Gentleman's magazine, Volume 167. London: F. Jefferies, page 285.
  7. ^ The Story Of Psyche With A Classical Enquiry Into The Signification And Origin Of The Fable By Elizabeth Strutt With Designs In Outline By John Gibson Esq: R.A.: Elizabeth Strutt (bibliographic description). London: The Royal Academy. Accessed October 2022.