Catherine Jemmat (bap. 1714 – 1766) was an English author who published in ''

The Gentleman's Magazine ''The Gentleman's Magazine'' was a monthly magazine founded in London, England, by Edward Cave in January 1731. It ran uninterrupted for almost 200 years, until 1922. It was the first to use the term ''magazine'' (from the French ''magazine'' ...

'' and produced two collections of her own.

Life

She was born Catherine Yeo. Her father, the Royal Navy captain John Yeo (d. 1756), was at sea for long periods. She was left to the care of an immature and neglectful stepmother. Catherine was educated for a while at a boarding school. She eventually sought escape from her father in a hasty marriage to a

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

silk

mercer Mercer may refer to: Business * Mercer (car), a defunct American automobile manufacturer (1909–1925) * Mercer (consulting firm), a large human resources consulting firm headquartered in New York City * Mercer (occupation), a merchant or trader, ...

called Jemmat. Jemmat proved a drunkard who was deep in debt and who was soon

bankrupt Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debt ...

. Captain Yeo, who retired with the rank of

Rear-Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarded ...

, refused to support her or the daughter she had by Jemmat. Catherine struck out on her own and made a living by getting the wealthy to sponsor publications of her own and collected works by friends. The works were often

ribald Ribaldry or blue comedy is humorous entertainment that ranges from bordering on indelicacy to indecency. Blue comedy is also referred to as "bawdiness" or being "bawdy". Sex is presented in ribald material more for the purpose of poking fun at ...

and many of the sponsors listed are anonymous.

Works

Her main work is ''Memoirs'' (2 vols, 1762).Memoirs of Catherine Jemmat
Archive.org, Retrieved 11 April 2016 She also published ''Miscellanies in Prose and Verse'' (1766). She freely admitted that the volumes also contained the work of others and it is unclear which are her own and which by others. In some of her works, she bemoans the double standard that allowed men to debauch themselves without a mark on their character whilst women receive "perpetual odium".Lonsdale, Roger (ed) (1990). '' Eighteenth Century Women Poets: An Oxford Anthology''. Oxford University Press. pp. 234,527. .

References

External links

* ''Miscellanies in Prose and Verse'' (1766). E format available in full at the Hathitrus

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jemmat, Catherine 1714 births 1766 deaths British poets British women poets Date of birth unknown British memoirists British women memoirists