Thomas Gaspey (31 March 1788 – 8 December 1871) was an English novelist and journalist. Gaspey was born in

Hoxton Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. It was Historic counties of England, historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. Hoxton lies north-east of the City of London, is considered to be a part of London's East End ...

as the son of William Gaspey, a lieutenant in the navy. His older brother, who was ten years his senior and shared his father's name, later became a writer.Gary 2008, p. viii While a youth he wrote verses for yearly pocket-books, and when about twenty contributed to ''Literary Recreations'', a monthly publication, edited by Eugenius Roche of the ''Morning Post.'' Soon afterwards he was engaged as parliamentary reporter on the ''Morning Post'', contributing also dramatic reviews, political parodies, and reports of trials for treason. In this paper he wrote an ''Elegy on the Marquis of Anglesey's Leg'', a jeu d'esprit which has been persistently attributed to

Canning Canning is a method of food preservation in which food is processed and sealed in an airtight container (jars like Mason jars, and steel and tin cans). Canning provides a shelf life that typically ranges from one to five years, although under ...

. On the ''Morning Post'' he was employed sixteen years, then for three or four years on the ''Courier'', a government paper, as sub-editor. In 1828 he bought a share in the ''

Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

'', the tone of which paper he raised as a literary and dramatic organ, Horace Smith, the Rev. T. Dale,

Alfred Crowquill Alfred Henry Forrester (10 September 1804 – 26 May 1872) was an English author, comics artist, illustrator and artist, who was also known under the pseudonym of Alfred Crowquill. Biography Alfred Forrester was the son of Robert Forrester of ...

, E. L. Blanchard, Gilbert à Beckett, and others contributing. His ''

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

'' (1827) and '' The History of George Godfrey'' (1828) are considered as early examples of the

Newgate novel The Newgate novels (or Old Bailey novels) were novels published in England from the late 1820s until the 1840s that glamorised the lives of the criminals they portrayed. Most drew their inspiration from the '' Newgate Calendar'', a biography of famo ...

. In 1836 he released '' The Self-Condemned'' a

historical novel Historical fiction is a literary genre in which a fictional plot takes place in the setting of particular real historical events. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to oth ...

set in

Elizabethan The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The Roman symbol of Britannia (a female per ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. He was for many years the senior member of the council of the Literary Fund. He was considered an excellent

mimic In evolutionary biology, mimicry is an evolved resemblance between an organism and another object, often an organism of another species. Mimicry may evolve between different species, or between individuals of the same species. In the simples ...

. The last twenty years of his life were spent quietly on his property at

Shooter's Hill Shooter's Hill is a district of South East London, England, straddling the Royal Borough of Greenwich and the London Borough of Bexley. It lies north of Eltham and south of Woolwich. With a height of , it is the highest point in the Borough of ...

, Kent, where he died on 8 December 1871, aged 83, and was buried at

Plumstead Plumstead is an area in southeast London, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich, England. It is located east of Woolwich. History Plumstead has been settled since ancient times, and London's earliest timber structure has been found here. ...

, Kent. He married Anne Camp in 1810 or 1811, and she died on 22 January 1883. His son, Thomas W. Gaspey, Ph.D., of

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...

, who died on 22 December 1871, was author of works on the

Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...

and

, and of several linguistic handbooks. Another son, William Gaspey (born at

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

20 June 1812, died at 17 St. Ann's Road,

North Brixton North Brixton is a locality in the London Borough of Lambeth in South London, formerly in Surrey. Notable people associated with North Brixton

*Ernest Stafford Carlos (1883-1917), painter and war artist *Charles Dod, Charles Roger Dod (1793-185 ...

, 19 July 1888), was a prolific writer in prose and verse.

Notable works

* ''The Mystery'', 1820. * ''Takings, or the Life of a Collegian, with 26 Etchings by Richard Dagley'', 1821, 8vo. * '' Calthorpe'', a novel, 1821, 3 vols. * '' The Lollards'', 1822, 3 vols. * ''Other Times, or the Monks of Leadenhall'', 1823, 3 vols. * ''The Witch-Finder'', 1824, 3 vols. * ''

'', 1827, 3 vols. * '' The History of George Godfrey'', 1828, 3 vols. * '' The Self-Condemned'', 1836, 3 vols. * ''Many-Coloured Life'', 1842. * ''The Pictorial History of France'', 1843, written in conjunction with G. M. Bussey. * ''The Life and Times of the Good Lord Cobham'', 1843, 2 vols. 12mo. * ''The Dream of Human Life'', 1849–52, 2 vols. unfinished. * ''The History of England from George III to 1859'', 1852–9, 4 vols. * ''The History of Smithfield'', 1852. * ''The Political Life of Wellington'', vol. iii. 1853, 4to.

References

* ;Attribution

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gaspey, Thomas 1788 births 1871 deaths People from Hoxton 19th-century English novelists English male journalists English newspaper editors The Sunday Times people English male novelists 19th-century English male writers Victorian novelists English historical novelists 19th-century English historians 19th-century English biographers 19th-century English journalists English male biographers Writers of historical fiction set in the early modern period People from Shooter's Hill Writers from Kent