Caroline Leigh Gascoigne (''gas-koin′''; , Smith; 2 May 1813 – 11 June 1883) was a 19th-century English poet and novelist. She published ''Temptation'' (1839), ''Evelyn Harcourt'' (1842), ''Dr. Harold's Note-Book'' (1869), and other works in prose and verse.

Biography

Caroline Leigh Smith was born 2 May 1813 in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, England. She was the daughter of MP John Smith, and his third wife Emma Leigh. Her early years were spent at her father's estate, Dale Park in

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

. Her father was a rich banker but he was accidentally poisoned by his nearly-blind wife, who gave him an overdose of

laudanum Laudanum is a tincture of opium containing approximately 10% powdered opium by weight (the equivalent of 1% morphine). Laudanum is prepared by dissolving extracts from the opium poppy (''Papaver somniferum Linnaeus'') in alcohol (ethanol). Red ...

. Her elder half brothers were the MPs

John Abel Smith John Abel Smith (2 June 1802 – 7 January 1871) was a British Member of Parliament (MP) for Chichester and Midhurst. He was the son of John Smith who preceded him as one of the members of parliament for Midhurst. Smith married Anne Jervoise, ...

and

Martin Tucker Smith Martin Tucker Smith (6 July 1803 – 10 October 1880) was an English banker and Liberal Party politician. Biography Early life Martin Tucker Smith was born on 6 July 1803. He was the second son of John Smith (1767–1842), and his wife Elizab ...

. Gascoigne began writing fiction and poetry at an early age. In 1834, she married Lt.Col. (later, General) Ernest Frederick Gascoigne, MP for

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

, and there were three children from this union. Caroline Leigh Gascoigne died on 11 June 1883.Meyers Konversations-Lexikon, 4. Auflage von 1888 bis 1890 (in German)

Selected works

Poems

* ''Belgravia'' (1851) * ''Recollections of the Crystal Palace'' (1852) * ''England's Heroes!'' (1855)

Novels

* ''Temptation, or, a wife's perils'' (1839) * ''The school for wives'' (1839) * ''Evelyn Harcourt'' (1842) * ''Spencer's Cross Manor House, a tale for young people'' (1852) * ''The Next Door Neighbours'' (1855) * ''Doctor Harold'' (1865)

Short stories

* ''My aunt Prue's railway journey'' (1865) * ''Dr. Harold's Note-Book'' (1869) * ''In Memoriam (of General E. F. Gascoigne)''. (1878)

Gallery

File:Belgravia a poem.png, "Belgravia" File:Doctor Harold.png, "Doctor Harold" File:Temptation or A wife's perils.png, "Temptation, or, A wife's perils" File:The next-door neighbours.png, "The next-door neighbours" File:Dr. Harold's Note-book.png, "Dr. Harold's Note-book" File:The school for wives.png, "The school for wives"

References

Bibliography

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gascoigne, Caroline Leigh 1813 births 1883 deaths 19th-century English novelists 19th-century English poets 19th-century English women writers Writers from London English women novelists English women poets Caroline