James Fraser (1804-1841) was a Scottish publisher, now known particularly for his association with

Thomas Carlyle Thomas Carlyle (4 December 17955 February 1881) was a Scottish essayist, historian and philosopher. A leading writer of the Victorian era, he exerted a profound influence on 19th-century art, literature and philosophy. Born in Ecclefechan, Dum ...

Life

Fraser's background was an Inverness family, and he carried on business at 215 Regent Street, London. Fraser published many books, among them Thomas Carlyle's '' Hero Worship''. The story of the dealings between the author and "the infatuated Fraser, with his dog's-meat tart of a magazine", was told in

J. A. Froude James Anthony Froude ( ; 23 April 1818 – 20 October 1894) was an English historian, novelist, biographer, and editor of ''Fraser's Magazine''. From his upbringing amidst the Anglo-Catholic Oxford Movement, Froude intended to become a cler ...

's biography of Carlyle. Fraser had one illegitimate son with a woman named Mary West. James Fitzjames Fraser West was born in 1833. He received medical tuition and practiced as a surgeon at

Queen's Hospital Queens is a borough of New York City. Queens or Queen's may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * Queens (group), a Polish musical group * "Queens" (Saara Aalto song), 2018 * ''Queens'' (novel), by Stephen Pickles, 1984 * "Queens", a song by ...

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...

. On 3 August 1836

Grantley Berkeley The Honourable George Charles Grantley FitzHardinge Berkeley (10 February 1800 – 20 February 1881), known as Grantley Berkeley, was a British politician, writer and sportsman. Background and education Berkeley was the sixth son of Frederick Be ...

assaulted Fraser, after the publication of criticism of his novel ''Berkeley Castle''. Cross actions were tried on 3 December, on the part of Fraser for assault, and Berkeley for libel. The damages for the assault were £100, for the libel £2. Fraser died 2 October 1841 at

Argyll Street Argyll Street is a road located in the Soho district of Central London. It links Great Marlborough Street to the south to Oxford Street in the north and is connected to Regent Street to the west by Little Argyll Street. Historically it was someti ...

, London, after a lingering illness.

''Fraser's Magazine''

Fraser published ''

Fraser's Magazine ''Fraser's Magazine for Town and Country'' was a general and literary journal published in London from 1830 to 1882, which initially took a strong Tory line in politics. It was founded by Hugh Fraser and William Maginn in 1830 and loosely directe ...

'' from February 1830, so-called in fact after the barrister Hugh Fraser who had founded it with

William Maginn William Maginn (10 July 1794 – 21 August 1842) was an Irish journalist and writer. About Born at Cork he became a contributor to ''Blackwood's Magazine'', and after moving to London in 1824 became for a few months in 1826 the Paris correspon ...

; Fraser himself referred to it as "The Town and Country". Among the contributors to the magazine were Thomas Carlyle,

William Makepeace Thackeray William Makepeace Thackeray (; 18 July 1811 – 24 December 1863) was a British novelist, author and illustrator. He is known for his satirical works, particularly his 1848 novel ''Vanity Fair'', a panoramic portrait of British society, and t ...

James Hogg James Hogg (1770 – 21 November 1835) was a Scottish poet, novelist and essayist who wrote in both Scots and English. As a young man he worked as a shepherd and farmhand, and was largely self-educated through reading. He was a friend of many ...

,Hunter, Adrian (ed.) (2020), ''James Hogg: Contributions to English, Irish and American Periodicals'', Edinburgh University Press, p. xx, Francis Sylvester Mahony,

Thomas Love Peacock Thomas Love Peacock (18 October 1785 – 23 January 1866) was an English novelist, poet, and official of the East India Company. He was a close friend of Percy Bysshe Shelley and they influenced each other's work. Peacock wrote satirical novels, ...

, J. A. Froude,

William Allingham William Allingham (19 March 1824 – 18 November 1889) was an Irish poet, diarist and editor. He wrote several volumes of lyric verse, and his poem "The Faeries" was much anthologised. But he is better known for his posthumously published ''Di ...

, and other well-known writers. After Fraser's death it fell to his successor, G. W. Nickisson, whose name first appeared on it in 1842. Five years later it was transferred to

John William Parker John William Parker (1791 – 1870) was an English publisher and printer. Life John Parker was born on 26 July 1791. His father was in the Royal Navy. At the age of fourteen he was apprenticed to William Clowes, and became the manager of the prin ...

, and it continued under the same name to October 1882, when it was superseded by '' Longman's Magazine''. The ''Gallery of Illustrious Literary Characters'' came out in ''Fraser's Magazine'' between 1830 and 1838, comprising 81 portraits, mainly by Daniel Maclise, with text by Maginn. In 1833 a quarto volume containing 34 of the portraits was issued, and in 1874 the complete gallery was republished for the first time. The portraits were reduced in size and the literary matter increased in ''The Maclise Portrait Gallery'', by William Bates, with 85 portraits, London, 1883.

Notes

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Fraser, James Year of birth missing 1841 deaths Scottish publishers (people)