Catherine Cibber, born Katherine Shore (baptised 1669 – 17 January 1734), was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

singer and actor. She was called Mrs Colley Cibber and the "greatest English actress of her time".

Life

Cibber was born in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...

and baptised in 1669. Her mother was Ann Shore and her father, Matthias and eventually two of her brothers (William and John) were sergeant-trumpeters to the King. Cibber was said to have been taught to sing and play the harpsichord by Henry Purcell. On 6 May 1693 Cibber married the actor

Colley Cibber Colley Cibber (6 November 1671 – 11 December 1757) was an English actor-manager, playwright and Poet Laureate. His colourful memoir ''Apology for the Life of Colley Cibber'' (1740) describes his life in a personal, anecdotal and even rambling ...

despite his poor prospects and insecure, socially inferior job. She was painted by leading portrait painter Thomas Hudson as "Mrs Colley Cibber", with red lips, brown eyes, mauve hair ribbons, a greenish gray satin dress and surrounded by red cushions and drapes. She was called the "greatest English actress of her time". Cibber and Katherine had twelve children between 1694 and 1713.

Theophilus Cibber Theophilus Cibber (25 or 26 November 1703 – October 1758) was an English actor, playwright, author, and son of the actor-manager Colley Cibber. He began acting at an early age, and followed his father into theatrical management. In 1727, Alex ...

was born during the

Great Storm of 1703 The great storm of 1703 was a destructive extratropical cyclone that struck central and southern England on 26 November 1703. High winds caused 2,000 chimney stacks to collapse in London and damaged the New Forest, which lost 4,000 oaks. Ships wer ...

.Barker, p. 165 Six died in infancy; Catherine, the eldest surviving daughter, married Colonel James Brown and seems to have been the dutiful one who looked after her father in his old age following his wife's death in 1734. She was duly rewarded at his death with most of his estate. His middle daughters, Anne and Elizabeth, went into business. Anne had a shop that sold fine wares and foods, and married John Boultby. Elizabeth had a restaurant near

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and W ...

, and married firstly Dawson Brett, and secondly (after Brett's death) Joseph Marples. His only son to reach adulthood, Theophilus, became an actor at

Drury Lane Theatre The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) and backs onto Drur ...

at the age of 16 in 1721. Theophilus became an embarrassment because of his scandalous life. Their other son to survive infancy, James, died in or after 1717 before reaching adulthood.Salmon, Eric (September 2004; online edition January 2008) "Cibber, Colley (1671–1757)", ''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

'', Oxford University Press
retrieved 11 February 2010
(Subscription required for online version) Colley's youngest daughter

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

followed in her father's theatrical footsteps, but she fell out with him and her sister Catherine, and she was cut off by the family.Ashley, pp. 157–159; Barker, p. 179 Cibber died in

Knightsbridge Knightsbridge is a residential and retail district in central London, south of Hyde Park. It is identified in the London Plan as one of two international retail centres in London, alongside the West End. Toponymy Knightsbridge is an ancien ...

in 1734 of asthma and she was buried three days later at

St Martin-in-the-Fields St Martin-in-the-Fields is a Church of England parish church at the north-east corner of Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, London. It is dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours. There has been a church on the site since at least the mediev ...

References

External link

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cibber, Catherine 1669 births 1734 deaths Entertainers from London English women singers