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George Manville Fenn (3 January 1831 in
Fenn later became a printer, editor and publisher of some short-lived periodicals, before attracting the attention of
Eric Ford: A Forgotten Victorian Author and the Society He Knew. Critical Essay
From ''Contemporary Review''; Sept. 1999. * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fenn, George Manville English male novelists 1831 births 1909 deaths People from Pimlico People from Isleworth English historical novelists Writers of historical fiction set in antiquity Writers of historical fiction set in the Middle Ages Writers of historical fiction set in the early modern period Nautical historical novelists Victorian novelists 19th-century English novelists 19th-century English educators 19th-century English biographers 19th-century English short story writers English male short story writers 19th-century English journalists English male journalists Writers from the City of Westminster English children's writers Alumni of Plymouth Marjon University English publishers (people) English magazine editors English printers 19th-century English non-fiction writers English male non-fiction writers English adventure novelists Sensation novelists
Pimlico
Pimlico () is a district in Central London, in the City of Westminster, built as a southern extension to neighbouring Belgravia. It is known for its garden squares and distinctive Regency architecture. Pimlico is demarcated to the north by Lon ...
– 26 August 1909 in Isleworth
Isleworth ( ) is a suburban town in the London Borough of Hounslow, West London, England.
It lies immediately east of Hounslow and west of the River Thames and its tributary the River Crane, London, River Crane. Isleworth's original area of ...
) was a prolific English novelist, journalist, editor and educationalist. Many of his novels were written with young adults in mind. His final book was his biography of a fellow writer for juveniles, George Alfred Henty.
Life and works
Fenn, the third child and eldest son of a butler, Charles Fenn, was largely self-educated, teaching himself French, German and Italian. After studying at Battersea Training College for teachers (1851–1854), he became the master of a national school atAlford, Lincolnshire
Alford is a market town and civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England, at the foot of the Lincolnshire Wolds, which form an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The population was recorded as 3,459 in the 2011 United Kin ...
.
Fenn later became a printer, editor and publisher of some short-lived periodicals, before attracting the attention of Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, journalist, short story writer and Social criticism, social critic. He created some of literature's best-known fictional characters, and is regarded by ...
and others with a sketch for ''All the Year Round
''All the Year Round'' was a British weekly literary magazine founded and owned by Charles Dickens, published between 1859 and 1895 throughout the United Kingdom. Edited by Dickens, it was the direct successor to his previous publication '' Ho ...
'' in 1864. He contributed to ''Chambers's Journal
''Chambers's Edinburgh Journal'' was a weekly 16-page magazine started by William Chambers in 1832. The first edition was dated 4 February 1832, and priced at one penny. Topics included history, religion, language, and science. William was so ...
'' and to the magazine '' Once a Week''. In 1866, he wrote a series of articles on working-class life for the newspaper ''The Star''. These works were collected and republished in four volumes, followed by a similar series in the ''Weekly Times''.
Fenn's first story for boys, ''Hollowdell Grange'', appeared in 1867. It was followed by a succession of other novels for juveniles and adults. ''The Star-Gazers'' (1894), for example, was a three-volume "astronomical romance" for adults. Having become the editor of ''Cassell's Magazine'' in 1870, Fenn then purchased ''Once a Week'' and edited it until it closed in 1879. He also wrote for the theatre. Fenn authored many historical fiction novels, including ''Crown and Sceptre: A West-Country Story'' (1889) about the English Civil War
The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...
, ''Ned Ledger'' (1899), focusing on naval combat during War of the Austrian Succession
The War of the Austrian Succession was a European conflict fought between 1740 and 1748, primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italian Peninsula, Italy, the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Related conflicts include King Ge ...
, ''The King's Sons'' (1901) about King Alfred
Alfred the Great ( ; – 26 October 899) was King of the West Saxons from 871 to 886, and King of the Anglo-Saxons from 886 until his death in 899. He was the youngest son of King Æthelwulf and his first wife Osburh, who both died when ...
, and ''Marcus, the Young Centurion'' (1904), about Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (12 or 13 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caesar's civil wa ...
.
Fenn and his family lived at Syon Lodge, Isleworth
Isleworth ( ) is a suburban town in the London Borough of Hounslow, West London, England.
It lies immediately east of Hounslow and west of the River Thames and its tributary the River Crane, London, River Crane. Isleworth's original area of ...
, Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...
, where he built up a library of 25,000 volumes and took up telescope making. His last book was a biography of a great fellow writer of boys' stories, '' George Alfred Henty''.
Family
In 1855, George Manville Fenn married Susanna Leake; they had two sons and six daughters. He died at his home on 26 August 1909.Fenn's works
Novels
References
External links
* * *Eric Ford: A Forgotten Victorian Author and the Society He Knew. Critical Essay
From ''Contemporary Review''; Sept. 1999. * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fenn, George Manville English male novelists 1831 births 1909 deaths People from Pimlico People from Isleworth English historical novelists Writers of historical fiction set in antiquity Writers of historical fiction set in the Middle Ages Writers of historical fiction set in the early modern period Nautical historical novelists Victorian novelists 19th-century English novelists 19th-century English educators 19th-century English biographers 19th-century English short story writers English male short story writers 19th-century English journalists English male journalists Writers from the City of Westminster English children's writers Alumni of Plymouth Marjon University English publishers (people) English magazine editors English printers 19th-century English non-fiction writers English male non-fiction writers English adventure novelists Sensation novelists