Elizabeth Miriam Squire Sprigge (10 June 1900, in
Kensington
Kensington is an area of London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, around west of Central London.
The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up by Kensingt ...
– 9 December 1974) was an English novelist, biographer, translator, and children's writer.
Biography
Elizabeth Sprigge was the elder daughter of Sir
Samuel Squire Sprigge
Sir Samuel Squire Sprigge (22 June 1860 – 17 June 1937) was an English physician, medical editor, and medical writer.
Biography
After education at Uppingham School from 1873 to 1878, he matriculated on 1 October 1878 at Caius College, Cambri ...
, editor of ''The Lancet''. On 23 July 1921 she married Mark Napier-Clavering (1898–1983), a business agent employed by
Debenhams
Debenhams plc was a British department store chain that operated in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Denmark, as well as franchised locations across Europe and the Asia Pacific.
The company was founded in 1778 as a single store in London and gr ...
, who on 27 May 1924 dropped 'Clavering' from his name by deed poll, it having been adopted by his grandfather, Rev. John Warren Napier. He was a descendant of
Francis Napier, 8th Lord Napier
Francis Scott Napier, 8th Lord Napier (23 February 1758 – 1 August 1823) was a British peer and army officer.
Biography
Napier was born in Ipswich in 1758, the son of William Napier (later 7th Lord Napier) and his wife, Mary, a daugh ...
. They were divorced in 1945, having had two daughters: Julyan Napier (1922–2005) and Ruth Napier (1923–1996).
From her late twenties until the end of her life, Elizabeth Sprigge published steadily. She might be best remembered for her 1973 biography of her long-time friend
Ivy Compton-Burnett
Dame Ivy Compton-Burnett, (; 5 June 188427 August 1969) was an English novelist, published in the original editions as I. Compton-Burnett. She was awarded the 1955 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for her novel ''Mother and Son''. Her works co ...
. According to
Joyce Carol Oates
Joyce Carol Oates (born June 16, 1938) is an American writer. Oates published her first book in 1963, and has since published 58 novels, a number of plays and novellas, and many volumes of short stories, poetry, and nonfiction. Her novels ''Black ...
,
Hilary Spurling
Susan Hilary Spurling ( Forrest; born 25 December 1940) is a British writer, known for her work as a journalist and biographer.
Early life and education
Born in Stockport, Cheshire, to circuit judge Gilbert Alexander Forrest (1912–1977) and t ...
's "exhaustively researched" ''Life of I. Compton-Burnett'' (Knopf, 1984) ".. seems to follow the general outline set by Elizabeth Sprigge's memoir-biography... while greatly expanding upon it" Likewise,
J. Bhagyalakshmi, in 'Ivy Compton-Burnett and her Art (1986) reflects that as opposed to Sprigge- who produced 'a friend's memoir'- Spurling took 'pains of a scholar' in compiling her biography; whereas Sprigge uncritically recounts the family tradition of kinship with landowning Scottish Burnetts and descent from them through
Alexander Burnett, 12th Laird of Leys, his son, judge
Robert Burnet, Lord Crimond
Robert Burnet, Lord Crimond (1592 – 24 August 1661Dalrymple of Hailes, p. 373) was a Scotland, Scottish advocate and judge.
Background
He was the fourth son of Alexander Burnett of Leys by his wife Katherine, daughter of Alexander Gordon of Le ...
, and his grandson
Gilbert Burnet
Gilbert Burnet (18 September 1643 – 17 March 1715) was a Scottish people, Scottish philosopher and historian, and Bishop of Salisbury. He was fluent in Dutch language, Dutch, French language, French, Latin language, Latin, Greek language, Gree ...
,
Bishop of Salisbury
The Bishop of Salisbury is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of Salisbury in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers much of the counties of Wiltshire and Dorset. The Episcopal see, see is in the Salisbur ...
from 1689 to 1715, Spurling, acknowledging the 'many misleading claims... made for I. Compton-Burnett's family tree'), meticulously traces the family back to the small tenant farmers from whom they actually descended. Additionally, Compton-Burnett's father, James, was claimed to be son of 'a considerable landowner' at Redlynch, near Salisbury, the place of James's birth (despite James always plainly referring to his father Charles as 'a farmer'); Charles was in fact an itinerant farm labourer- including at Redlynch- who later settled at French Street, in a poor area of Southampton; the other Compton-Burnetts of Charles's generation were labourers and grocers).
Selected publications
Novels
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Children's books
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Biographies
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Translations
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References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Sprigge, Elizabeth
1900 births
1974 deaths
English women novelists
English biographers
English children's writers
English women children's writers
English translators
20th-century English novelists
20th-century English women writers
English women non-fiction writers
English women biographers
20th-century English translators