Angela Thirkell
Angela Thirkell was an English author born on January 30, 1890, in London. She came from a notable family; her mother was connected to the Pre-Raphaelite movement, and her relatives included prominent figures like Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin and author Rudyard Kipling. Thirkell’s early life was marked by personal challenges, including a troubled marriage and the loss of her daughter. After moving to Australia with her second husband, she began writing to support her family. Her first major work, *Three Houses*, published in 1931, quickly gained popularity, leading to a prolific career during which she published numerous novels that captured the essence of English life in the 1930s and 1940s. Thirkell's writing is characterized by a gentle humor and nostalgia, often reflecting the social history of her time. She also ventured into children's literature and biographies. Her works experienced a revival in the mid-1990s, reintroducing her to new generations of readers. Angela Thirkell passed away on January 30, 1961, leaving behind a significant literary legacy.
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Subject Terms
Angela Thirkell
Author
- Born: January 30, 1890
- Birthplace: Kensington Square, London, England
- Died: January 30, 1961
- Place of death: Bramley, England
Biography
Angela Thirkell was born Angela Margaret Mackail on January 30, 1890, at Kensington Square, London. Her mother, Margaret Burne-Jones, married John Mackail, a professor of poetry at Oxford University and administrator at the Ministry of Education. Thirkell’s grandfather was Sir Edward Burne-Jones, a Pre- Raphaelite painter and designer of stained-glass windows. Her brother, Denis Mackail, became a very successful novelist. Among Thirkell’s family were uncles Stanley Baldwin, the prime minister, and the famous author Rudyard Kipling.
In 1911, Thirkell married James Campbell McInnes, a professional baritone. Their son Graham was born in 1912, followed by their son Colin, born in 1914. In 1917, their daughter, Mary, was born as the marriage was breaking up. In November, 1917, Thirkell was granted a divorce and took her children to live with her parents in Pembroke Gardens, London. After Mary died in 1918, Thirkell met and married George Lancelot Thirkell, a military man.
In 1920, the family traveled to George’s hometown in Tasmania, Australia, on board a troopship. These adventures were recounted in her 1934 book, Trooper to the Southern Cross, published under the pseudonym Leslie Parker. The family later moved to Melbourne, Australia, where Thirkell joined the higher social circles. In 1921, Thirkell’s third son was born, Lancelot George. The marriage was troubled and, when her husband’s business failed in 1929 because of the Great Depression, Thirkell divorced him and left Australia with the children to return to her parents in London.
Thirkell began writing while in Australia, partly because she wanted to and partly to earn money. Some of her short stories were published in periodicals in Australia and England. After returning to London, Thirkell became a professional writer in order to earn a living. Her first book, Three Houses, a memoir of her childhood that was published in 1931, became an immediate success. In 1933, Thirkell published three novels and continued to publish one or two novels most years until her death in 1961. In addition to writing, Thirkell visited the United States in 1949 to give lectures at Yale and Columbia Universities.
Thirkell’s books were popular in both England and the United States for their gentle, humorous tone and the nostalgic feel they invoked for English life in the 1930’s and 1940’s. In addition to revealing her personal life, the novels also chronicled the social history of the time. Most of her novels were set in the year prior to publication, which included the prewar, wartime, and postwar England.
In addition to the novels, Thirkell also wrote a book of children’s stories, The Grateful Sparrow; a biography of Harriette Wilson; an account of the events in London during Queen Victoria’s coronation in 1838; and three semiautobiographical novels. At the time of her death on January 30, 1961, Thirkell was working on her book Three Score and Ten, which was finished by her friend Caroline LeJeune and published in 1961. Thirkell’s works were reintroduced to the reading public in the mid-1990’s and have been well received.