Anna Louisa Geertruida Bosboom-Toussaint (September 16, 1812April 14, 1886) was a Dutch novelist.

Life and career

Geertruida Toussaint was born in

Alkmaar Alkmaar () is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands, located in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Holland. Alkmaar is well known fo ...

, Netherlands, on 16 September 1812. Her father, a

pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English, is a healthcare professional who is knowledgeable about preparation, mechanism of action, clinical usage and legislation of medications in ...

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

descent, gave her a fair education, and at an early period of her career she developed a taste for

historical research Historical method is the collection of techniques and guidelines that historians use to research and write histories of the past. Secondary sources, primary sources and material evidence such as that derived from archaeology may all be draw ...

, fostered by a forced indoor life as a result of weak health. Her first

romance Romance may refer to: Common meanings * Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings ** Romantic orientation, the classification of the sex or gender with which a pers ...

, ''Almagro'', appeared in 1837, followed by ''De graaf van Devonshire'' ("The

Earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the Peerages in the United Kingdom, peerage, ranking below a marquess and above a viscount. A feminine form of ''earl'' never developed; instead, ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

shire") in 1838; ''De Engelschen te Rome'' ("The English at Rome") in 1840, and ''Het Huis Lauernesse'' ("The House of Lauernesse") in 1841, an episode of the

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

that was translated into many European

language Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed language, signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing syste ...

s. These stories, mainly founded upon some of the most interesting epochs of Dutch history, betrayed a remarkable grasp of facts and situations, combined with an undoubted mastery over her mother tongue, although her style is sometimes involved and not always faultless. Toussaint spent 1840 to 1850 carrying out further studies, resulting in an 1851-1854 series of three novels dealing with the first Earl of Leicester's adventures in the

Low Countries The Low Countries (; ), historically also known as the Netherlands (), is a coastal lowland region in Northwestern Europe forming the lower Drainage basin, basin of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta and consisting today of the three modern "Bene ...

: ''Leycester in Nederland'' (3 vols.), ''Vrouwen van het Leycestersche Tydperk'' (Women of Leicester's Epoch, 3 vols.), and ''Gideon Florensz'' (3 vols.). In 1851 she married the Dutch painter,

Johannes Bosboom Johannes Bosboom (18 February 1817 – 14 September 1891) was a Dutch painter and watercolorist of the Hague School, known especially for his paintings of church interiors. Biography He was born in The Hague. At the age of 14 he became a student ...

(1817–1891), after which she was known as Mrs Bosboom-Toussaint. After 1870 Geertruida Bosboom-Toussaint abandoned historical romance for the modern society novel, but her ''Delftsche Wonderdokter'' ("The

Necromancer Necromancy () is the practice of magic involving communication with the dead by summoning their spirits as apparitions or visions for the purpose of divination; imparting the means to foretell future events and discover hidden knowledge. ...

Delft Delft () is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, Netherlands. It is located between Rotterdam, to the southeast, ...

", 1871) and ''Majoor Frans'' ("Major Frank", 1875) did not achieve the success of her earlier works. ''Majoor Frans'' was translated into English (1885). Her novels were published in a collected edition (1885–1888, 25 vols.). She died in

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

on 14 April 1886.

Works

* ''Almagro'' (1837) * ''De Graaf van Devonshire: romantische épisode uit de jeugd van Elisabeth Tudor'' ("The Earl of Devonshire, Romantic Episode from Elisabeth Tudor's Youth", 1838) * ''Engelschen te Rome: romantische épisode uit de regering van paus Sixtus V'' ("The English at Rome, Romantic Episode from Pope Sixtus V's Reign", 1839) * ''Het huis Lauernesse'' ("The House of Lauernesse", 1840) * ''Lord Edward Glenhouse'' (1840) * ''De prinses Orsini'' ("The Princess of Orsini", 1843) * ''Eene kroon voor Karel den Stouten'' ("A Crown for Charles the Bold", 1842) * ''De graaf van Leycester in Nederland'' ("The Earl of Leicester in the Netherlands", 1846) * ''Mejonkvrouwe De Mauléon'' ("Lady De Mauléon", 1848) * ''Don Abbondio II'' (1849) * ''Het huis Honselaarsdijk in 1638'' ("The House of Honselaarsdijk in 1638", 1849) * ''De vrouwen van het Leycestersche tijdvak'' ("The Women of the Leicesterean Era", 1850) * ''Media-Noche: een tafereel uit den Nijmeegschen vredehandel, 1678'' ("Media Noche, a Tableau from the Nijmegen Peace Trade", 1852) * ''Gideon Florensz: romantisch-historische épisode uit het laatste tijdperk van Leycesters bestuur in Nederland'' ("Gideon Florensz, a Romantic-Historical Episode from the Last of Leicester's Administration in the Netherlands", 1854) * ''Graaf Pepoli: de roman van een rijke edelman'' ("Count Pepoli, a Rich Nobleman's Tale", 1860) * ''De triomf van Pisani'' ("Pisani's Triumph", 1861) * ''De verrassing van Hoey in 1595'' ("Hoey's Surprise of 1595", 1866) * ''De Delftsche wonderdokter'' ("The Nectromancer of Delft", 1871) * ''Majoor Frans'' ("Major Francis", 1875) * ''Raymond de schrijnwerker'' ("Raymond, Master Carpenter", 1880) * ''Volledige romantische werken'' ("Complete Romantic Works", 1885–1888) Until 1851, when Toussaint married Johannes Bosboom, her works were published under her maiden name (A. L. G. Toussaint). Later works and reprints of her earlier works carried her

married name When a person (traditionally the wife in many cultures) assumes the Surname, family name of their spouse, in some countries and cultures that name replaces the person's previous surname, which in the case of the wife is called the maiden name ("bi ...

(A. L. G. Bosboom-Toussaint).

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bosboom-Toussaint Dutch women writers 1812 births 1886 deaths People from Alkmaar Dutch people of French descent