Kitty Lee Jenner
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Kitty Lee Jenner (12 September 185321 October 1936) was an English artist,
bard In Celtic cultures, a bard is a professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's ancestors and to praise t ...
and writer who helped to set up the
Cornish Gorsedh Gorsedh Kernow (Cornish Gorsedd) is a non-political Cornwall, Cornish organisation, based in Cornwall, United Kingdom, which exists to maintain the national Celtic spirit of Cornwall. It is based on the Welsh-based Gorsedd, which was founded by ...
. She grew up in
Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...
and studied art in London. She later became an author, publishing six novels under the name Katharine Lee, as well as writing books on
Christian symbolism Christian symbolism is the use of symbols, including archetypes, acts, artwork or events, by Christianity. It invests objects or actions with an inner meaning expressing Christian ideas. The symbolism of the early Church was characterized by bei ...
. She became known as Mrs Henry Jenner and Katharine Jenner following her marriage to
Henry Jenner Henry Jenner (8 August 1848 – 8 May 1934) was a British scholar of the Celtic languages, a Cornish cultural activist, and the chief originator of the Cornish language revival. Jenner was born at St Columb Major on 8 August 1848. He was the ...
in 1877. The couple had one child together. To begin with, she was the more famous person in the relationship. As well as pursuing her writing career, Jenner worked together with her husband on themes such as
sacred art Religious art is artistic imagery using religious inspiration and motifs and is often intended to uplift the mind to the spiritual. Sacred art involves the ritual and cultic practices and practical and operative aspects of the path of the spiritu ...
and the
Cornish language revival The Cornish language revival ( kw, dasserghyans Kernowek, lit='resurrection of Cornish') is an ongoing process to revive the use of the Cornish language of Cornwall, England. The Cornish language's disappearance began to hasten during the 13th cent ...
. After becoming a
bard In Celtic cultures, a bard is a professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's ancestors and to praise t ...
of
Gorsedd Cymru Gorsedd Cymru (), or simply the Gorsedd or the Orsedd ( cy, yr Orsedd), is a society of Welsh-language poets, writers, musicians and others who have contributed to the Welsh language and to public life in Wales. Its aim is to honour such individua ...
in 1904, she took the name Morvoren. She died at home in 1936, at the age of 83.


Early life

Katharine Lee Rawlings was born at
Hayle Hayle ( kw, Heyl, "estuary") is a port town and civil parish in west Cornwall, England. It is situated at the mouth of the Hayle River (which discharges into St Ives Bay) and is approximately seven miles (11 km) northeast of Penzance. ...
in
Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...
on 12 September 1853, the eldest daughter of Catherine and William Rawlings. She was educated at home and then studied in London at the
National Art Training School The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City, London, White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the Unit ...
(now Royal College of Art) in
South Kensington South Kensington, nicknamed Little Paris, is a district just west of Central London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically it settled on part of the scattered Middlesex village of Brompton. Its name was supplanted with ...
and the
Slade School of Fine Art The UCL Slade School of Fine Art (informally The Slade) is the art school of University College London (UCL) and is based in London, England. It has been ranked as the UK's top art and design educational institution. The school is organised as ...
in
Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural, intellectual, and educational institutions. Bloomsbury is home of the British Museum, the largest mus ...
. She produced sketches and watercolours and later became famous for her writing. Rawlings married
Henry Jenner Henry Jenner (8 August 1848 – 8 May 1934) was a British scholar of the Celtic languages, a Cornish cultural activist, and the chief originator of the Cornish language revival. Jenner was born at St Columb Major on 8 August 1848. He was the ...
on 12 July 1877 and became known as Kitty Jenner or Mrs Henry Jenner. Her husband had corresponded with her since 1873, when he interviewed her father about the
Cornish language Cornish (Standard Written Form: or ) , is a Southwestern Brittonic language, Southwestern Brittonic language of the Celtic language family. It is a List of revived languages, revived language, having become Extinct language, extinct as a livin ...
, a topic which later became a major research interest for the couple. They honeymooned in Europe and on 21 June 1878 Jenner gave birth to their only child, Cecily Katharine Ysolt Jenner.


Career

Jenner published her first novel in 1882. It was entitled ''A Western Wildflower'' and she used the pseudonym Katharine Lee. She was to publish five more novels, the last being ''When Fortune Frowns: Being the Life and Adventures of Gilbert Coswarth, a Gentleman of Cornwall; How he Fought for Prince Charles in the years 1745 and 1746, and What Befell Him Thereafter'' (1895). Until her husband's fame grew in his old age, her writing career made her the better known of the two. It was published by
Horace Cox Horace Cox was an important and distinct publisher of books in London, founded in the Victorian era. Cox himself died in 1918. Amongst others, the firm published Crockford's Clerical Directory, The Field and The Law Times.''Death Of Mr. Horace Co ...
at the price of 6 shillings. Jenner retold the story of the
Jacobite rising of 1745 The Jacobite rising of 1745, also known as the Forty-five Rebellion or simply the '45 ( gd, Bliadhna Theàrlaich, , ), was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the Monarchy of Great Britain, British throne for his father, James Franci ...
and the
Battle of Culloden The Battle of Culloden (; gd, Blàr Chùil Lodair) was the final confrontation of the Jacobite rising of 1745. On 16 April 1746, the Jacobite army of Charles Edward Stuart was decisively defeated by a British government force under Prince Wi ...
, ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' review commenting "she acquits herself with credit". Jenner and her husband were keen Jacobites, joining the
Order of the White Rose The Order of the White Rose of Finland ( fi, Suomen Valkoisen Ruusun ritarikunta; sv, Finlands Vita Ros’ orden) is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty, and the Order of the Lion of Finland. T ...
as part of the
Neo-Jacobite Revival The Neo-Jacobite Revival was a political movement that took place during the 25 years before the First World War in the United Kingdom. The movement was monarchist, and had the specific aim of replacing British parliamentary democracy with a restor ...
. They returned to Jenner's home town of
Hayle Hayle ( kw, Heyl, "estuary") is a port town and civil parish in west Cornwall, England. It is situated at the mouth of the Hayle River (which discharges into St Ives Bay) and is approximately seven miles (11 km) northeast of Penzance. ...
in 1909 and immersed themselves in Cornish culture, living in a house they called Bospowes. They worked together on the
Cornish language revival The Cornish language revival ( kw, dasserghyans Kernowek, lit='resurrection of Cornish') is an ongoing process to revive the use of the Cornish language of Cornwall, England. The Cornish language's disappearance began to hasten during the 13th cent ...
and
sacred art Religious art is artistic imagery using religious inspiration and motifs and is often intended to uplift the mind to the spiritual. Sacred art involves the ritual and cultic practices and practical and operative aspects of the path of the spiritu ...
. In 1904, Jenner had become a
bard In Celtic cultures, a bard is a professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's ancestors and to praise t ...
, being given the name Morvoren at
Gorsedd Cymru Gorsedd Cymru (), or simply the Gorsedd or the Orsedd ( cy, yr Orsedd), is a society of Welsh-language poets, writers, musicians and others who have contributed to the Welsh language and to public life in Wales. Its aim is to honour such individua ...
. In August 1928, ten Cornish people were initiated as bards at a
Gorsedd A gorsedd (, plural ''gorseddau'') is a community or meeting of modern-day bards. The word is of Welsh origin, meaning "throne". It is spelled gorsedh in Cornish and goursez in Breton. When the term is used without qualification, it usually r ...
at
Treorchy Treorchy ( cy, Treorci; ) is a town and community (and electoral ward) in Wales. Once a mining town, it retains such characteristics. Situated in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf in the Rhondda Fawr valley. Treorchy is also one of the 16 c ...
and planned to set up a
Cornish Gorsedh Gorsedh Kernow (Cornish Gorsedd) is a non-political Cornwall, Cornish organisation, based in Cornwall, United Kingdom, which exists to maintain the national Celtic spirit of Cornwall. It is based on the Welsh-based Gorsedd, which was founded by ...
to promote Cornish language and culture. Jenner and her husband joined the group to form the Council of Gorsedh Kernow. The first Gorsedh was held at the
Boscawen-Un Boscawen-Ûn () is a Bronze Age stone circle close to St Buryan in Cornwall, UK. It consists of nineteen upright stones in an ellipse with another, leaning, middle stone just south of the centre. There is a west-facing gap in the circle, which ...
stone circle in September 1928. In the 1900s, Jenner published three non-fiction works on the use of symbols in Christianity. Referring to her ''Christian Symbolism'' (1910),
D. H. Lawrence David Herbert Lawrence (11 September 1885 – 2 March 1930) was an English writer, novelist, poet and essayist. His works reflect on modernity, industrialization, sexuality, emotional health, vitality, spontaneity and instinct. His best-k ...
wrote "It is necessary to grasp the Whole. At last I have got it". After reading the book, he began to use the
phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...
as his emblem. Jenner had explained the phoenix's symbolic meaning in her book as the "resurrection of the dead and its triumph over death", commenting that "the Phoenix in itself was a recognised emblem of the resurrection of Christ". Jenner wrote and illustrated ''In the Alsatian Mountains: A Narrative of a Tour in the Vosges (With a Map)'' (1883) which gave an account of a European tour made in 1882 and was dedicated to her daughter Ysolt. She released a book of poetry entitled ''Songs of the Stars and the Sea'' in 1926.


Gallery of works


Death

Jenner died at home from
myocarditis Myocarditis, also known as inflammatory cardiomyopathy, is an acquired cardiomyopathy due to inflammation of the heart muscle. Symptoms can include shortness of breath, chest pain, decreased ability to exercise, and an irregular heartbeat. The ...
on 21 October 1936. She left around £23,000 in her will (equivalent to £ in ). She is buried together with her husband at
Lelant Lelant ( kw, Lannanta) is a village in west Cornwall, England, UK. It is on the west side of the Hayle Estuary, about southeast of St Ives and one mile (1.6 km) west of Hayle.Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 203 ''Land's End'' The vi ...
in west Cornwall.


References


Further reading

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jenner, Kitty Lee 1853 births 1936 deaths People from Hayle Cornish Jacobites Cornish language revival Bards of Gorsedh Kernow Burials in Cornwall 20th-century British writers 19th-century British writers Alumni of the Royal College of Art Alumni of the Slade School of Fine Art English illustrators English watercolourists British Christian writers Women religious writers Cornish-speaking people 20th-century English novelists English travel writers British women travel writers 20th-century English poets