Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806–1861)
Author of Sonnets from the Portuguese
About the Author
Elizabeth Barrett was born in Coxhoe Hall, Durham, England, in 1806. Most of her childhood was spent on her father's estate, reading the classics and writing poetry. An injury to her spine when she was fifteen, the shock of her brother's death by drowning in 1840 and an ogre-like father made her show more life dark. But she read and wrote, and no little volume of verse ever produced a richer return than her Poems of 1844. Robert Browning read the poems, liked them, and came to her rescue like Prince Charming in the fairy story. Elizabeth Barrett and Robert Browning were married on September 12, 1846. Barrett Browning's enduring fame has rested on two works-Poems (1850), containing Sonnets from the Portuguese, and Aurora Leigh (1857). The former is a celebration of woman as man's other half and the latter is a celebration of woman's potential to stand on her own. During the Edwardian and later periods, it was Sonnets from the Portuguese that embodied Barrett Browning. Since the rise of feminism, it has been Aurora Leigh. More recently, a third side of Barrett Browning has been revealed: the incisive critical and political commentator, seen in her letters. Elizabeth Barrett Browning died in Florence, Italy, in 1861. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Disambiguation Notice:
Officially, her given names were "Elizabeth Barrett", and her family name "Moulton Barrett", but the Moulton part was rarely used. Before her marriage (Sept. 1846) she published as "Elizabeth Barrett Barrett; subsequently as "Elizabeth Barrett Browning".
Image credit: Courtesy of the NYPL Digital Gallery (image use requires permission from the New York Public Library)
Series
Works by Elizabeth Barrett Browning
Sonnets from the Portuguese and other treasured poems of Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1933) — Author — 60 copies
The Letters of Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barret Barrett 1845-1846 vol I (1899) (1899) — Author; Author — 46 copies
Mrs. Browning Poems: The Poetical Works of Elizabeth Barret Browning Complete in One Volume from the 12th London… (1793) 43 copies
The Letters of Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett Barrett, 1845-1846, with Portraits and Facsimiles, in Two Volumes,… (1899) — Author; Author — 13 copies
Life, letters and essays of Elizabeth Barrett Browning: Volume 1. Letters of Elizabeth Barret Browning addressed to… (1999) 10 copies
Twenty-two unpublished letters of Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Robert Browning addressed to Henrietta and Arabella… (1935) 7 copies
Invisible Friends: The Correspondence of Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Benjamin Robert Haydon, 1842-1845 (Rollins… (1972) 6 copies
ELIZABETH BARRETT TO MISS MITFORD: LETTERS OF ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING TO MARY RUSSELL MITFORD. (1954) 6 copies
Women of Letters: Selected Letters of Elizabeth Barrett Browning & Mary Russell Mitford (Twayne Women's Studies) (1987) 5 copies
A selection from Mrs. Browning's poems; (Macmillan's pocket American and English classics) (1903) 5 copies
Mrs. Browning's Poems, with Memoir 4 copies
Last poems 4 copies
Poetical Works (5 vols.) 3 copies
Sonnets by E.B.B. 3 copies
The Poetical Works of Elizabeth B. Browning - Series II with Portrait and Illustrations (1910) 2 copies
Rhyme of the Duchess May 2 copies
Poems, by E.B. Barrett 2 copies
Poems By Elizabeth Barrett Browning. With An Introduction By Alice Meynell. London : 1903 (1900) 2 copies
The Poetical Works of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Complete in One Volume from the Last London Edition (Florence… (1870) 2 copies
Poetical works of Mrs Browning 2 copies
Poems by E. B. Browning 2 copies
Sonnet 43 2 copies
poems 2 copies
Poems by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. Selected with an introduction by Samuel J. Looker (Crown Classics.) (1948) 2 copies
The Lady's Yes 2 copies
Browning 2 copies
Florentine friends : the letters of Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Robert Browning to Isa Blagden, 1850-1861 (2009) 1 copy
Let Me Count The Ways — Author — 1 copy
Sonnets From The Portguese 1 copy
mrs. browning's poems vol IV 1 copy
Sonnets from the Portuguese (Dover Thrift Editions) by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (2000-01-03) (1655) 1 copy
Lady Geraldine's Courtship and Other Poems [The Masterpiece Library] The Penny Poets VIII (1900) 1 copy
Poems of E. Browning 1 copy
Mrs. Browning's Poems, Vol 3 1 copy
Mrs. Browning's Poems, Vol 2 1 copy
Mrs. Browning's Poems, Vol 1 1 copy
A Musical Instrument 1 copy
Poems by E. B. Browning and Selections from the Poetical Works of Robert Browning. Two Volume Set. (1896) — Author — 1 copy
FREE: Classic Love Poems 1 copy
EBB ( PORT ) 1 copy
Mrs. Browning 1 copy
Poems by Mrs. Browning 1 copy
Mrs. Brownings's Poems 1 copy
Aurora Leigh Book 5-9 1 copy
Aurora Leigh Book 1-4 1 copy
Sonnets From The Portuguese 1 copy
The Poetical Works of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, With a Memoir corrected, from the Last London Edition. 2 Volumes… (1870) 1 copy
The Poetical Works of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, with Prefatory Memoir, including "Aurora Leigh" (1903) 1 copy
John Brown's Body 1 copy
Browning poetry 1 copy
Poetical Works of Elizabeth Barrett Browning Complete (From the Twelfth London Edition) (1889) 1 copy
50 Greatest Poems 1 copy
Associated Works
The Best Poems of the English Language: From Chaucer Through Robert Frost (2004) — Contributor — 1,058 copies
Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama (1995) — Contributor, some editions — 929 copies
The Assassin's Cloak: An Anthology of the World's Greatest Diarists (2000) — Contributor, some editions — 554 copies
Gentlemen, Scholars and Scoundrels: A Treasury of the Best of Harper's Magazine from 1850 to the Present (1959) — Contributor — 56 copies
Out of the Best Books: An Anthology of Literature, Vol. 2: Love, Marriage, and the Family (1966) — Contributor — 39 copies
Out of the Best Books: An Anthology of Literature, Vol. 3: Intelligent Family Living (1967) — Contributor — 33 copies
Love & Marriage — Contributor — 2 copies
The Brownings for the young — Contributor — 2 copies
BBC Proms 2019 : Prom 39 : Elgar, Errollyn Wallen, Mendelssohn and Mussorgsky [sound recording] (2019) — Text — 1 copy
BBC Proms 2019 : Prom 39 : Elgar, Errollyn Wallen, Mendelssohn and Mussorgsky [programme] (2019) — Text — 1 copy
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Legal name
- Browning, Elizabeth Barrett
- Other names
- Barrett, Elizabeth Barrett
Browning, Elizabeth Barrett - Birthdate
- 1806-03-06
- Date of death
- 1861-06-29
- Burial location
- English Cemetery, Florence, Italy
- Gender
- female
- Nationality
- UK
- Country (for map)
- England, UK
- Birthplace
- Coxhoe Hall, County Durham, England
- Place of death
- Florence, Italy
- Places of residence
- Great Malvern, Worcestershire, England, UK
Durham, England, UK (Coxhoe Hall ∙ birth)
Florence, Italy
Sidmouth, England, UK
London, England, UK
Torquay, Devon, England, UK - Occupations
- poet
writer
reviewer
translator - Relationships
- Browning, Robert (husband)
Browning, Robert Wiedemann Barrett (son)
Mitford, Mary Russell (friend)
Moulton Barrett, Edward (father) - Short biography
- The love story of Elizabeth Barrett, one of the most prominent poets of the Victorian era from a young age, and the poet and playwright Robert Browning, has itself inspired many works of fiction and biography. Their courtship had to be conducted in secret as her domineering father did not want his children to marry. After much planning, in 1846 the couple married in a private ceremony in London and then eloped to Paris. They went on to Italy, which became their home almost continuously until Elizabeth's death. In 1849, at the age of 43, between four miscarriages, she gave birth to a son, Robert Wiedemann Barrett Browning, whom they called Pen.
- Disambiguation notice
- Officially, her given names were "Elizabeth Barrett", and her family name "Moulton Barrett", but the Moulton part was rarely used. Before her marriage (Sept. 1846) she published as "Elizabeth Barrett Barrett; subsequently as "Elizabeth Barrett Browning".
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