WILLIAM HARRISON AINSWORTH

'William Harrison Ainsworth' (February 4 1805 - January 3 1882) was an English historical novelist. He was born in Manchester, the son of a solicitor. He went to the Manchester Grammar School before becoming trained in the law. However the legal profession had no attraction for him, and going to London to complete his studies he made the acquaintance of John Ebers, publisher, and at that time manager of the Opera House, by whom he was introduced to literary and dramatic circles, and whose daughter he afterwards married. For a short time he tried the publishing business, but soon gave it up and devoted himself to journalism and literature his first success as a writer of romance being scored with ''Rookwood'' in 1834, of which Dick Turpin is the leading character; and thenceforward he continued to pour forth till 1881 a stream of novels, to the number of 39. ''Tower of London'' was his fourth work, and, according to Ainsworth himself, it was written chiefly with the aim of interesting his fellow-countrymen in the historical associations of the Tower. Ainsworth died in Reigate on January 3, 1882.
Ainsworth depends for his effects on striking situations and powerful descriptions: he has little humour or power of delineating character.

Contents

Works

External links

References

Works

★ ''Rookwood'' (1834)

★ ''The Admirable Crichton'' (1837)

★ (1839)

★ ''The Tower of London'' (1840)

★ (1841)

★ (1843)

★ (1849)

★ ''Guy Fawkes'' (1842)

★ ; (1842)

★ ''The Flitch of Bacon'' (1842)

★ ''The Miser's Daughter'' (1842)

★ ''Auriol'' (1844)

★ ''Ovingdean Grange: a tale of the South Downs'' (1860)

★ ''The Constable of the Tower'' (1861)

★ ''Preston Fight or The Insurrection of 1715'' (1875)

★ ''Chetwynd Calverley, A Tale'' (1876)

★ ''Mervyn Clitheroe'' (1898)

External links

★

★ Biography of Ainsworth at the Literary Encyclopedia

★

★ Text of Auriol, also known as The Elixir Of Life

★ List of web links and list of works by Ainsworth

References

★ The Checklist of Fantastic Literature, , Everett, Bleiler, Shasta Publishers, ,