Rosa Praed
Rosa Praed, born in 1851 in Bungroopim, Queensland, Australia, was an influential novelist whose experiences in colonial Australia shaped her literary career. Coming from a family of early English settlers, her childhood was marked by significant upheaval, including the violence between settlers and Indigenous Australians, which ultimately forced her family to relocate to Brisbane. After receiving a limited education, she took on the responsibility of educating her siblings following her mother's death. In 1872, Praed married Arthur Campbell Bulkley Mackworth Praed, and they moved to Curtis Island, where she faced isolation that inspired her early novels.
In 1875, the family moved to England, where Praed settled and began her writing journey, producing her first novel, *An Australian Heroine*, in 1880. Over her lifetime, she authored a total of forty-five books, including novels and her autobiography, *My Australian Girlhood: Sketches and Impressions of Bush Life* (1902). Praed's works often reflect her intimate knowledge of Australian life and the complexities of her experiences as a woman in the 19th century, providing a unique perspective on colonial society and its challenges.
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Rosa Praed
- Born: March 27, 1851
- Birthplace: Bungroopim, Queensland, Australia
- Died: April 10, 1935
- Place of death: Torquay, Devon, England
Biography
Rosa Praed was born in Bungroopim, Queensland, Australia, in 1851 to early settlers from England. When she was five years old, Praed’s father decided to move the family from Bungroopim to a more remote area. They settled on an enormous ranch, where they lived in a two-room hut that had previously been inhabited by Aborigines. In 1857, Aborigines slaughtered eleven settlers on a nearby ranch, which led to a retaliatory massacre by the European settlers. Praed’s family fled the violence and relocated to Brisbane, where Praed received some education from a governess. When Praed was fourteen, her father returned his family to the sparsely populated ranch land, and Praed’s mother began educating the children herself. After Praed’s mother died, Praed took over the education of her siblings and began appearing at social functions with her father, who now held a government position.
In 1872, when she was twenty-one, Praed married Arthur Campbell Bulkley Mackworth Praed, who hailed from a prestigious British family. The newlyweds immediately moved to Curtis Island, where Praed’s husband owned a cattle station. Praed felt isolated and depressed during her three years on the island and later wrote three novels based on her experiences there. In 1875, the family, now with two young children, traveled to England. Originally planned as an extended holiday, Praed never returned to live in Australia. The family settled in Northamptonshire, where Praed gave birth to two more children and began her writing career. In 1880, Praed published her first novel, An Australian Heroine. Praed quickly released another novel the following year, Policy and Passion: A Novel of Australian Life. Praed would write forty-five books during her lifetime, including her autobiography, My Australian Girlhood: Sketches and Impressions of Bush Life (1902).