Jeffery Farnol (10 February 1878 – 9 August 1952) was a British writer from 1907 until his death in 1952, known for writing more than 40

romance novel A romance novel or romantic novel generally refers to a type of genre fiction novel which places its primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and usually has an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." Pre ...

s, often set in the

Georgian Era The Georgian era was a period in British history from 1714 to , named after the Hanoverian Kings George I, George II, George III and George IV. The definition of the Georgian era is often extended to include the relatively short reign of Willi ...

English Regency The Regency era of British history officially spanned the years 1811 to 1820, though the term is commonly applied to the longer period between and 1837. King George III succumbed to mental illness in late 1810 and, by the Regency Act 1811, h ...

period, and

swashbuckler A swashbuckler is a genre of European adventure literature that focuses on a heroic protagonist stock character who is skilled in swordsmanship, acrobatics, guile and possesses chivalrous ideals. A "swashbuckler" protagonist is heroic, daring, ...

s. He, with

Georgette Heyer Georgette Heyer (; 16 August 1902 – 4 July 1974) was an English novelist and short-story writer, in both the Regency romance and detective fiction genres. Her writing career began in 1921, when she turned a story for her younger brothe ...

, largely initiated the Regency romantic genre.

Biography

Personal life

John Jeffery Farnol was born in

Aston Aston is an area of inner Birmingham, England. Located immediately to the north-east of Central Birmingham, Aston constitutes a ward within the metropolitan authority. It is approximately 1.5 miles from Birmingham City Centre. History Aston wa ...

, Birmingham, UK, the son of Henry John Farnol, a factory-employed brass-founder, and Kate Jeffery. He had two brothers and a sister. His childhood was spent in London and

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

. He attended the

Westminster School of Art The Westminster School of Art was an art school in Westminster, London. History The Westminster School of Art was located at 18 Tufton Street, Deans Yard, Westminster, and was part of the old Royal Architectural Museum. H. M. Bateman described ...

after losing his job with a Birmingham metal-working company. In 1900, he married Blanche Wilhelmina Victoria Hawley (1883–1955), the 16-year-old daughter of noted New York scenic artist H. Hughson Hawley. They relocated to the United States, where he found work as a scene painter. They had daughter Gillian Hawley. He returned to England about 1910, and settled in Eastbourne, Sussex. During 1938, he divorced and married Phyllis Mary Clarke on 20 May, and adopted her daughter Charmian Jane. His nephew was

Ewart Oakeshott Ronald Ewart Oakeshott (25 May 1916 – 30 September 2002) was a British illustrator, collector, and amateur historian who wrote prodigiously on medieval arms and armour. He was a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, a Founder Member of the Ar ...

, the British illustrator, collector, and amateur historian, who wrote on medieval arms and armour. Farnol died on 9 August 1952 at age 74 in

Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...

after a long struggle with cancer.

Writing career

Farnol published his first romance novel, '' My Lady Caprice'', in 1907. The success of his early novels led Farnol to become a professional writer. He produced about 40 novels and volumes of stories, and some non-fiction and children's books. His last book was completed by his second wife Phyllis. Two of his early books, ''

The Amateur Gentleman ''The Amateur Gentleman'' is a novel by Jeffery Farnol, published in 1913. It was made into a silent film in 1920 and again in 1926 and a talking film in 1936 with Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. starring as the protagonist, Barnabas Barty. Plot summ ...

'' and ''

The Broad Highway ''The Broad Highway'' is a novel published in 1910 by English author Jeffery Farnol. Much of the novel is set in Sissinghurst, a small village South East England in Kent. It was a best-seller, and the number one selling fiction book in the Unit ...

'', have been issued in a version edited by romance novelist

Barbara Cartland Dame Mary Barbara Hamilton Cartland, (9 July 1901 – 21 May 2000) published as Barbara Cartland was an English writer, known as the Queen of Romance, who published both contemporary romance, contemporary and historical romance novels, the lat ...

. ''The Amateur Gentleman'' was adapted for British cinema in

1920 Events January * January 1 ** Polish–Soviet War in 1920: The Russian Red Army increases its troops along the Polish border from 4 divisions to 20. ** Kauniainen, completely surrounded by the city of Espoo, secedes from Espoo as its own ma ...

and

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King E ...

, and for American cinema in

1926 Events January * January 3 – Theodoros Pangalos declares himself dictator in Greece. * January 8 **Abdul-Aziz ibn Saud is crowned King of Hejaz. ** Crown Prince Nguyễn Phúc Vĩnh Thuy ascends the throne, the last monarch of V ...

Bibliography

Single novels

*'' My Lady Caprice'' (1907) ater issued as "Chronicles of the Imp"*''

'' (1910) *''The Money Moon'' (1911) *''Fortune's Fool'' (1912) *''The Honourable Mr. Tawnish'' (1913) *''Beltane the Smith'' (1915) *''The Definite Object'' (1917) *''Our Admirable Betty'' (1918) *''The Geste of Duke Jocelyn'' (1919) *''Sir John Dering'' (1923) *''Gyfford of Weare'' (1928) *''The Shadow'' (1929) *''Another Day'' (1929) *''Over the Hills'' (1930) *''The Jade of Destiny'' (1931) *''Charmian Lady Vibart'' (1932) *''Voices from the Dust'' (1932) *''The Way Beyond'' (1933) *''Winds of Fortune'' (1934) *''John o'the Green'' (1935) *''Portrait of a Gentleman in Colours'' (1935) *''A Pageant of Victory'' (1936) *''A Book for Jane'' (1937) *''The Crooked Furrow'' (1937) (Trilogy with ''The Happy Harvest'' & ''Waif of the River'') *''The Lonely Road'' (1938) *''A New Book for Jane'' (1939) *''Adam Penfeather, Buccaneer'' (1940) *''A Matter of Business and other stories'' (1940) *''The King Liveth'' (1943) *''The Piping Times'' (1945) *''Heritage Perilous'' (1946) *''My Lord of Wrybourne'' (1948) S Title: ''Most Sacred of All''Sequel to ''Heritage Perilous'' *''The Fool Beloved'' (1949) *''The Glad Summer'' (1951) *''Justice by Midnight'' (1955)

Treasure and Vengeance Series

#''Black Bartlemy's Treasure'' (1920) #''Martin Conisby's Vengeance'' (1921)

Jasper Shrig Series

#''

'' (1913) #''Peregrine's Progress'' (1922) #''The Loring Mystery'' (1925) #''High Adventure'' (1926) #''The Quest of Youth'' (1927) #''The Way Beyond'' (1933) #''The Happy Harvest'' (1939) #''Murder by Nail'' (1942) S Title: ''Valley of the Night''#''The Ninth Earl'' (1950) #''Waif of the River'' (1952)

Omnibus collections

*''The Shadow, and Other Stories'' (1929) *''Voices from the Dust'' (1932) *''A Matter of Business'' (1940)

Non fiction

*''Some War Impressions'' (1918) *''Great Britain at War'' (1918) *''Famous Prize Fights or Epics of the Fancy'' (1928)

Film adaptations

*''

'', directed by

Maurice Elvey Maurice Elvey (11 November 1887 – 28 August 1967) was one of the most prolific film directors in British history. He directed nearly 200 films between 1913 and 1957. During the silent film era he directed as many as twenty films per year. He a ...

(UK, 1920, based on the novel ''

'') *''The Definite Object'', directed by Edgar J. Camiller (UK, 1920, based on the novel ''The Definite Object'') *''The Money Moon'', directed by

Fred Paul Fred Paul (1880–1967) was a Swiss-born British actor and film director. Paul was born in Lausanne in 1880 but moved to Britain at a young age. He was a prolific actor and director in the 1910s and 1920s, but his career dramatically declined with ...

(UK, 1920, based on the novel ''The Money Moon'') *''

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

'', directed by

R. H. Burnside Robert Hubber Thorne Burnside (August 13, 1873 – September 14, 1952) was an American actor, director, producer, composer, and playwright. He was artistic director of the 5,200-seat New York Hippodrome from 1908 to 1923. He wrote and staged h ...

(1924, based on the novel ''The Definite Object'') *''

'', directed by

Sidney Olcott Sidney Olcott (born John Sidney Allcott, September 20, 1872 – December 16, 1949) was a Canadian-born film producer, director, actor and screenwriter. Biography Born John Sidney Allcott in Toronto, he became one of the first great direc ...

(1926, based on the novel ''

'') *''

'', directed by

Thornton Freeland Thornton Freeland (February 10, 1898 – May 22, 1987) was an American film director who directed 26 British and American films in a career that lasted from 1924 to 1949. Early success He was born in Hope, North Dakota in 1898 and originally wor ...

(UK, 1936, based on the novel ''

'')

References and sources

External links

Jeffery Farnol Appreciation Society
*Jeffery Farno
Pages

Electronic editions

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Farnol, Jeffery 1878 births 1952 deaths 20th-century English novelists 20th-century English male writers Alumni of the Westminster School of Art Deaths from cancer in England English historical novelists English male novelists Writers from Birmingham, West Midlands