First of acclaimed british actress fanny kembles journals of her fouryear residence in america, this work the record of her tour in 1832. In fanny kembles civil wars, catherine clinton reveals how one womans life reflected in microcosm the public battlesover slavery, the role of women, and sectionalismthat fueled our nations greatest conflict and have permanently marked our history. Frances anne fanny kemble 27 november 1809 15 january 1893 was a notable british actress from a theatre family in the early and mid19th century. An american theater and its ghosts, are testament to my passions. Fanny kemble audio books, best sellers, author bio. She was also a wellknown and popular writer, whose published works included plays, poetry, eleven volumes of memoirs, travel writing and works about the theatre. Born into the first family of the british stage, fanny kemble was one of the most famous woman writers of the englishspeaking world.
They agreed generally that the british actress, also known as fanny, was brilliant, engaging, and excitable, as well as difficult in the manner of nineteenthcentury women who earned that reputation simply by voicing an opinion. Frances fanny kemble was born on this date in 1809. My next book, a historymemoir about my slaveholding scarlett ancestors, will touch on both stage and page in part through the stories of british actress fanny kemble and american writer margaret mitchell. I write both nonfiction and fiction under the name, dr sanjida oconnell. Fanny kemble kemble, fanny, 18091893 online books about this author are available, as is a wikipedia article. During her marriage she kept journals of everyday life, and after some years grew to detest the institution of slavery and the things butler stood for. A member of the famous kemble theatrical family, fanny was the older daughter of actor charles kemble and the. See all books authored by fanny kemble, including journal of a residence on a georgian plantation in 18381839, and fanny kembles journals, and more on. Fanny kemble books list of books by author fanny kemble. Butler, frances anne kemble daughter of charles and maria kemble. Mar 04, 2019 empty and abandoned, haunting pictures show the remains of wooden home on plantation in the american south that horrified british actress fanny kemble and inspired her to publish her famous anti. Journal of a residence records kembles observations of the poor treatment of.
Fanny kemble was troubled by slavery and wrote of her georgia experiences in her diary. Frances anne kemble 1809 1893 frances anne fanny kemble 27 november 1809 15 january 1893 was a notable british actress from a theatre family in the early and midnineteenth century. During the next eight years, fanny often summered by herself in massachusetts, and she spent one year abroad by herself. Her success was immediate, and her stature as an actress grew in both comedy and tragedy. Born into londons leading theatrical family, frances anne fanny kemble was an actress who became one of. The great sarah siddons born sarah kemble was fannys aunt, her fathers younger sister. Sarah siddons, one of the greatest english tragic actresses. Fanny kemble poems, quotations and biography on fanny kemble poet page. She too was an actress a young age, and later met and married pierce butler while performing in the u. Pierce butler was a georgiaborn philadelphian whose marriage to british actress fanny kemble was in discord as his ownership of southern slaves clashed with her antislavery sentiments, eventually leading to the couples divorce. During the next eight years, fanny often summered by herself in.
This is a collection of letters written by frances kemblebutler to her friend elizabeth sedgwick, a notable american novelist. Empty and abandoned, haunting pictures show the remains of wooden home on plantation in the american south that horrified british actress fanny kemble and inspired her to publish her famous anti. Fanny kemble was a british actress who married megaplantation owner, pierce butler of georgia. In trying to understand louisa, i investigated the books she loved and the people she admired.
Nothing finer did ever stage exhibit, wrote an awestruck walt whitman, who was a teenager at the time, and my boyish heart. Frances anne kemble 27 november 1809 15 january 1893, was a famous british actress and author in the early and mid nineteenth century. In 1830 the british actress fanny kemble described the sensation of riding in a train as strange beyond description. She was the original julia in the hunchback, written for her by sheridan knowles. Fanny kemble author of journal of a residence on a. The true story of fanny kemble is a 2000 american television film starring jane seymour and directed by james keach.
Fanny kemble kemble, fanny, 18091893 online books about this author are available, as is a wikipedia article kemble, fanny, 18091893. She abandoned the stage and settled into married life, initially unaware of her husbands dreadful possessions, some 700 slaves on his coastal georgia plantations. In addition to her essays, poetry, plays, and a novel, kemble published six works of memoir, eleven. Haunting pictures show the remains of a wooden plantation. Frances anne fanny kemble was a notable british actress from a theatre family in the early and midnineteenth century.
The two would radically change our perception of time, space, and our place in the world, leading to a new way of seeing that. Fanny kemble, actress, abolitionist, author of plantation. Frances anne kemble 27 november 1809 15 january 1893, was a famous british actress and author in the early and mid nineteenth cen. This revolutionary new mode of transportation came into being at almost exactly the same time as an equally revolutionary new invention. The afterlife of fanny kembles journal laphams quarterly. Frances anne kemble poems by the famous poet all poetry. Much of her writing was memoir, with editions of her letters and journals being published, though she did. Fanny kemble kemble, fanny, 18091893 the online books page. Journal of a residence on a georgian plantation fanny. Frances anne kemble 27 november 1809 15 january 1893, was a famous british actress and author in the early and mid nineteenth century youth and acting career. She learned to read and write, although slaves were prohibited from doing so.
When she was twentytwo years old and already a sensation in london, the british actress fanny kemble traveled with her father to the united states for a tour that filled theaters up and down the atlantic coast. Fanny kemble author of journal of a residence on a georgian. Frances anne fanny kemble author british travel writing. During the civil war, black american nurse susie king taylor 18481912 aided the union army. Her husband, the heir to the plantations in georgia, forbade her to publish this text on pain of never seeing her daughters again. She was also a wellknown and popular writer, whose published works included plays, poetry, eleven volumes of memoirs, travel writing and works about.
Fanny kembles journals by catherine clinton, hardcover. The year before publication, she married pierce butler of south carolina, in what proved to be a disastrous marriage. Frances anne fanny kemble 27 november 1809 15 january 1893 was a notable british actress from a theatre family in the early and midnineteenth century. List of books and articles about fanny kemble online. She was the eldest of 12 children of roger and sarah kemble, who led a troupe of traveling actors and were progenitors of a noted family of actors to a third generation, including a famous granddaughter, fanny kemble. Read all poems of fanny kemble and infos about fanny kemble.
In 1836, just two years after famed british actress fanny kemble married pierce butler, he inherited the second largest plantation in georgia. Fanny kemble november 27, 1809 1893 was a famous british actress and author in the early and mid nineteenth century. In fanny kemble s civil wars, catherine clinton reveals how one womans life reflected in microcosm the public battlesover slavery, the role of women, and sectionalismthat fueled our nations greatest conflict and have permanently marked our history. Journal of a residence on a georgian plantation in 18381839. Courtesy wikimedia commons frances anne kemble 27 november 1809 15 january 1893 was an english poet and a wellknown actress, who also wrote plays, travel literature, works about the theatre, and 11 volumes of memoirs. She was a white british actress, author, and abolitionist. Her paternal uncle was the great tragedian john philip kemble and her paternal aunt sarah siddons. Fanny kemble was born to a family that dominated the british stage for generations. Her husband, the heir to the plantations in georgia, however, forebade her to publish this material on pain of never seeing her daughters again. Frances anne kemble 18091893 fanny kemble was a british actress who married megaplantation owner, pierce butler of georgia.
At first, fanny kemble refrained from publishing her text, though the manuscript was repeatedly revised and circulated among her friends katharine anne sedgwick, for one, was an enthusiastic reader. Her memoir of plantersociety life, published in 1863 as journal of a residence on a georgia plantation, provided, according to author catherine clinton. Journal of a residence on a georgian plantation in 1838. Fanny kemble was born on this day in 1809 into a prominent british theater family and went on to become an accomplished actress, poet, and travel writer. Frances anne kemble had many admirers, some famous, some not. Before i read it, i knew that kemble was a british actress who spent a winter on a georgia plantation before the civil war, but i didnt know the whole story, which was only slowly revealed in the text. The british actress and writer fanny kembles infamous entanglement with georgia began in the 1830s when she married pierce mease butler, who in 1836 inherited his grandfathers legacy, including hundreds of slaves and several plantations on the sea islands. A leading british actress, fanny kemble married a wealthy philadelphian during her american tour in 1834. With the financial crash of 18571858 butler was forced to sell his slaves in 1859.
With such diametrically opposed views, its no wonder that their initially blissful marriage would end in divorce. Journal of a residence on a georgian plantation, 18381839. For other uses of the proper noun kemble see the disambiguation page entitled kemble. Long recognized as unique in the literature of american slavery and of life in the antebellum south. Henry james called fanny kembles autobiography one of the most animated autobiographies in the language. Fanny kemble frances anne kemble, 180993, elder daughter of charles kemble, made her debut as juliet in 1829 under her fathers management at covent garden. My latest novel is sugar island, set during the american civil war, its inspired by the real life tale of fanny kemble, a british actress who was forced to live on a slave plantation in the deep south. This is one of those books that im glad i read, but was glad to be finished with. Fanny is a british actress who married an american man, not knowing when she married him that he would someday inherit a large plantation with hundreds of slaves. A british stage star turned georgia plantation mistress, fanny kemble is perhaps best remembered as a critic of slaveryand an influential opponent of this. Frances anne fanny kemble was born on 27 november 1809 near covent garden, the daughter of charles kemble 17751854. It depicts the life of british actress and abolitionist fanny. Shortly after she took a ride on the manchester and liverpool railroad.
She was a wellknown and popular writer, whose published works included plays, poetry, eleven volumes of memoirs, travel writing and works about the theatre. Born into the first family of the british stage, fanny kemble was one of the most famous woman writers of the englishspeaking world, a bestselling author on both sides of the atlantic. Fanny kemble 18091893 the british actress and writer fanny kembles infamous entanglement with georgia began in the 1830s when she married pierce mease butler, who in 1836 inherited his grandfathers legacy, including hundreds of slaves and several plantations on the sea islands. Frances anne kemble 27 november 1809 15 january 1893 was a notable british actress from a theatre family in the early and midnineteenth century. Upon the death of the celebrated british actress fanny kemble 18091893, her confidant and admirer henry james said she had written some of the best autobiography of her day. Buy a cheap copy of fanny kembles civil war book by catherine clinton. Born frances anne kemble, 27 november 1809, london, england. Fanny kemble kemble, fanny, 18091893 the online books. Fanny kemble, popular english actress who is also remembered as the author of plays, poems, and reminiscences, the latter containing much information about the stage and social history of the 19th century. A personal indictment of the institute of slavery in the southern united states, as witnessed directly by fanny kemble, a british actress in 1838 and 1839.