Mary Mackay (1 May 185521 April 1924), also called Minnie Mackey, and known by her pseudonym Marie Corelli (, also , ), was an English novelist. From the appearance of her first novel ''

A Romance of Two Worlds ''A Romance of Two Worlds'' was Marie Corelli's first novel, published in 1886. It referenced the contemporary debate between creationism and evolution, as well as supernatural themes, overlaid with elements of science fiction. The book was an imm ...

'' in 1886, she became the bestselling fiction-writer in England, her works largely concerned with Christianity, reincarnation, astral projection and mysticism. Yet despite her many distinguished patrons, she was often ridiculed by critics. Corelli lived her later years in

Stratford-upon-Avon Stratford-upon-Avon (), commonly known as just Stratford, is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district, in the county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It is situated on the River Avon, north-we ...

, whose historic buildings she fought hard to preserve.

Life and writings

Early life

Mary Mills was born in London to Mary Elizabeth Mills, a servant of the Scottish poet and songwriter Dr

Charles Mackay Charles (or Charlie) Mackay, McKay, or MacKay may refer to: * Charles Mackay (author) (1814–1889), Scottish poet, journalist, author, anthologist, novelist, and songwriter * Charles McKay (1855–1883), American naturalist and explorer * Charles ...

, her biological father, who was married to another woman at the time of young Mary's conception. After his first wife died, he married Mary Elizabeth, whereupon their daughter Mary took the "Mackey" surname. For the rest of her life, Mary / Marie would attempt to conceal her illegitimacy, and to that end disseminated a number of romantic falsehoods about her parentage and upbringing, including stories of adoption and noble Italian ancestry. Her unreliability as a source complicates the task of reconstructing her biography. In 1866, eleven-year-old Mary was sent to a Parisian

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

(or in some accounts, an English school staffed by nuns) to further her education. She returned home four years later in 1870.

Career

Mackay began her career as a musician, giving piano recitals and adopting the name Marie Corelli for her billing. Eventually she turned to writing and published her first novel, ''

'', in 1886. In her time, she was the most widely read author of fiction. Her works were collected by

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...

Randolph Churchill Randolph Frederick Edward Spencer-Churchill (28 May 1911 – 6 June 1968) was an English journalist, writer, soldier, and politician. He served as Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for Preston from 1940 to 1945. The only son of British ...

, and members of the British Royal Family, among others. Yet although sales of Corelli's novels exceeded the combined sales of popular contemporaries, including

Arthur Conan Doyle Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle (22 May 1859 – 7 July 1930) was a British writer and physician. He created the character Sherlock Holmes in 1887 for ''A Study in Scarlet'', the first of four novels and fifty-six short stories about Ho ...

H. G. Wells Herbert George Wells"Wells, H. G."
Revised 18 May 2015. ''

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work. ...

, critics often derided her work as "the favourite of the common multitude". She faced criticism from the literary elite for her allegedly melodramatic writing. In ''

The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British magazine on politics, culture, and current affairs. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving weekly magazine in the world. It is owned by Frederick Barclay, who also owns ''The ...

'',

Grant Allen Charles Grant Blairfindie Allen (February 24, 1848 – October 25, 1899) was a Canadian science writer and novelist, educated in England. He was a public promoter of evolution in the second half of the nineteenth century. Biography Early life a ...

called her "a woman of deplorable talent who imagined that she was a genius, and was accepted as a genius by a public to whose commonplace sentimentalities and prejudices she gave a glamorous setting."

James Agate James Evershed Agate (9 September 1877 – 6 June 1947) was an English diarist and theatre critic between the two world wars. He took up journalism in his late twenties and was on the staff of ''The Manchester Guardian'' in 1907–1914. He later ...

represented her as combining "the imagination of a Poe with the style of an

Ouida Ouida (; 1 January 1839 – 25 January 1908) was the pseudonym of the English novelist Maria Louise Ramé (although she preferred to be known as Marie Louise de la Ramée). During her career, Ouida wrote more than 40 novels, as well as sh ...

and the mentality of a nursemaid." A recurring theme in Corelli's books is her attempt to reconcile Christianity with

reincarnation Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the philosophical or religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new life in a different physical form or body after biological death. Resurrection is a ...

, astral projection, and other mystical ideas. She was associated at some point with the

Fraternitas Rosae Crucis Fraternitas Rosae Crucis (Fraternity of the Rosy Cross or FRC) is a Rosicrucian fraternal organization established in the United States by Paschal Beverly Randolph in 1856,Greer, page 194 and is the oldest Rosicrucian Order founded in the US.Lewi ...

; a

Rosicrucian Rosicrucianism is a spiritual and cultural movement that arose in Europe in the early 17th century after the publication of several texts purported to announce the existence of a hitherto unknown esoteric order to the world and made seeking it ...

and mystical organization, and her books were a part of the foundation of today's corpus of

esoteric Western esotericism, also known as esotericism, esoterism, and sometimes the Western mystery tradition, is a term scholars use to categorise a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements that developed within Western society. These ideas a ...

philosophy. Her portrait was painted by

Helen Donald-Smith Helen Donald-Smith (before 30 September 1852 – 23 July 1933) was a British artist who worked in oil and watercolour, and was active Wiktionary:circa, circa 1890–1925. Her work featured landscapes, particularly of Venice, and portraits, inc ...

. Corelli famously had little time for the press. In 1902 she wrote to the editor of ''

The Gentlewoman ''The Gentlewoman'' was a weekly illustrated paper for women founded in 1890 and published in London. For its first thirty-six years its full title was ''The Gentlewoman: An Illustrated Weekly Journal for Gentlewomen''.Nos. 1 to 1,853 dated bet ...

'' to complain that her name had been left out of a list of the guests in the Royal Enclosure at the

Braemar Braemar is a village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, around west of Aberdeen in the Highlands. It is the closest significantly-sized settlement to the upper course of the River Dee sitting at an elevation of . The Gaelic ''Bràigh Mhàrr'' prop ...

Highland Gathering, saying she suspected this had been done intentionally. The editor replied that her name had indeed been left out intentionally, because of her own stated contempt for the press and for the snobbery of those wishing to appear in "news puffs" of society events. Both letters were published in full in the next issue. The writer also gained some fame after her letter on the

curse of the Pharaohs The curse of the pharaohs or the mummy's curse is a curse alleged to be cast upon anyone who disturbs the mummy of an ancient Egyptian, especially a pharaoh. This curse, which does not differentiate between thieves and archaeologists, is claime ...

to ''

New York World The ''New York World'' was a newspaper published in New York City from 1860 until 1931. The paper played a major role in the history of American newspapers. It was a leading national voice of the Democratic Party. From 1883 to 1911 under publi ...

'' was published. Corelli claimed that she had warned

George Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon George Edward Stanhope Molyneux Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon, (26 June 1866 – 5 April 1923), styled Lord Porchester until 1890, was an English peer and aristocrat best known as the financial backer of the search for and excavation of ...

(one of the finders of the tomb of

Tutankhamun Tutankhamun (, egy, twt-ꜥnḫ-jmn), Egyptological pronunciation Tutankhamen () (), sometimes referred to as King Tut, was an Egyptian pharaoh who was the last of his royal family to rule during the end of the Eighteenth Dynasty (ruled ...

) about the "dire punishment" likely to occur to those who rifle Egyptian tombs, claiming to cite an ancient book that indicated that poisons had been left after burials.

Personal life

Corelli spent her final years in

. There she fought hard for the preservation of Stratford's 17th-century buildings, and donated money to help their owners remove the plaster or brickwork that often covered their original

timber-framed Timber framing (german: Holzfachwerk) and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden ...

façades. Novelist Barbara Comyns Carr mentions Corelli's guest appearance at an exhibition of Anglo-Saxon items found at

Bidford-on-Avon Bidford-on-Avon is a large village and civil parish in the English county of Warwickshire, very close to the border with Worcestershire. In the 2001 census it had a population of 4,830, increasing to 5,350 at the 2011 census. History Rykn ...

in 1923. Corelli's eccentricity became well known. She would boat on the Avon in a

gondola The gondola (, ; vec, góndoła ) is a traditional, flat-bottomed Venetian rowing boat, well suited to the conditions of the Venetian lagoon. It is typically propelled by a gondolier, who uses a rowing oar, which is not fastened to the hull, ...

, complete with a

gondolier The gondola (, ; vec, góndoła ) is a traditional, flat-bottomed Venetian rowing boat, well suited to the conditions of the Venetian lagoon. It is typically propelled by a gondolier, who uses a rowing oar, which is not fastened to the hull, ...

, whom she had brought over from

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

. In his autobiography,

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...

, who had a deep dislike of Corelli, describes visiting her in Stratford and how the meeting changed his perception.

For over forty years, Corelli lived with her companion,

Bertha Vyver Bertha Vyver (11 June 1854 – 20 November 1941) was a caretaker for Scottish poet Charles Mackay and the companion of Marie Corelli. From 1875 until his death in 1889, Vyver kept house and nursed Mackay, later caring for her own mother prior to ...

, to whom she left everything when she died. She did not identify herself as a

lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...

, but several biographers and critics have noted the frequent erotic descriptions of

female beauty Physical attractiveness is the degree to which a person's physical features are considered aesthetically pleasing or beautiful. The term often implies sexual attractiveness or desirability, but can also be distinct from either. There are many f ...

that appear in her novels, although they are expressed by men. Corelli was known to have expressed a genuine passion for the artist Arthur Severn, to whom she wrote daily letters from 1906 to 1917. Severn was the son of

Joseph Severn Joseph Severn (7 December 1793 – 3 August 1879) was an English portrait and subject painter and a personal friend of the famous English poet John Keats. He exhibited portraits, Italian genre, literary and biblical subjects, and a selec ...

and close friend of

John Ruskin John Ruskin (8 February 1819 20 January 1900) was an English writer, philosopher, art critic and polymath of the Victorian era. He wrote on subjects as varied as geology, architecture, myth, ornithology, literature, education, botany and politi ...

. In 1910, she and Severn collaborated on ''The Devil's Motor'', with Severn providing illustrations for Corelli's story. Her love for the long-married painter, her only known romantic attachment to a man, remained unrequited; in fact Severn often belittled Corelli's success. During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Corelli's personal reputation suffered when she was convicted of food hoarding.

She died in Stratford and is buried there in the Evesham Road cemetery. Later Bertha van der Vyver was buried alongside her.

Public image

Corelli was known to fabricate or exaggerate many details of her life. For example, she consistently claimed (in public and in private) that she had been seventeen years old when her first novel, ''

'', was published in 1886, putting her year of birth at 1868 or 1869. This was repeated in contemporary biographies, though it is now believed that she was born in 1855. When she assumed the name "Marie Corelli" at the beginning of her career, she also took on a false backstory, writing to her first publisher, George Bentley, "I am Venetian and can trace myself back to the famous musician

Arcangelo Corelli Arcangelo Corelli (, also , , ; 17 February 1653 – 8 January 1713) was an Italian composer and violinist of the Baroque era. His music was key in the development of the modern genres of sonata and concerto, in establishing the preeminence of ...

", and on other occasions claimed to descend from the

Doges of Venice The Doge of Venice ( ; vec, Doxe de Venexia ; it, Doge di Venezia ; all derived from Latin ', "military leader"), sometimes translated as Duke (compare the Italian '), was the chief magistrate and leader of the Republic of Venice between 726 a ...

. Corelli avoided being seen in public, and according to biographer Brian Masters, was possessed of a "positive terror of being photographed". She finally allowed a photograph of herself to be published as the frontispiece of her 1906 novel ''Treasure of Heaven'', though it was apparently airbrushed to depict her as "a sweet young lady in her early twenties". Around the same time,

wrote the following description of Corelli's appearance in his diary during a visit to Stratford:

She is about fifty years old but has no grey hairs; she is fat and shapeless; she has a gross animal face; she dresses for sixteen, and awkwardly and unsuccessfully and pathetically imitates the innocent graces and witcheries of that dearest and sweetest of all ages...

Legacy

Corelli is generally accepted to have been the inspiration for at least two of

E. F. Benson Edward Frederic Benson (24 July 1867 – 29 February 1940) was an English novelist, biographer, memoirist, archaeologist and short story writer. Early life E.F. Benson was born at Wellington College (Berkshire), Wellington College in Berkshir ...

's characters in his Lucia series of six novels and a short story. A modern critic has written that Corelli was probably also the inspiration for "Rita's" (

Eliza Humphreys Eliza Margaret Jane Humphreys (14 June 1850 – 1 January 1938) (born Gollan) was an English novelist. Biography Eliza Margaret Jane Gollan was born at Gollanfield in Inverness-shire, the daughter of John Gollan, a Scottish businessman and ...

's) main character in ''Diana of the Ephesians'', which was published a year before E. F. Benson's first Lucia novel, and had been rejected by Hutchinson, which later published the "Lucia" Lucas novels. In Chapter III of

Bruce Marshall Lieutenant-Colonel Claude Cunningham Bruce Marshall, known as Bruce Marshall (24 June 1899 – 18 June 1987) was a prolific Scottish writer who wrote fiction and non-fiction books on a wide range of topics and genres. His first book, ''A Thief ...

's '' The World, the Flesh and Father Smith'', the protagonist – a Catholic priest – is in hospital, recovering from a wound. A nurse gives him a copy of Marie Corelli's ''Temporal Power'', with the hope that the book would convert him to Protestantism. However, Father Smith finds the book "stupid and flamboyant", puts it aside and prays for Corelli, since "she really ought to have known better". In 2007, the British film ''

Angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...

'', based on a book by

Elizabeth Taylor Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was a British-American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 1950s. ...

, was released as a thinly-veiled biography of Corelli. The film starred

Romola Garai Romola Sadie Garai (; born 6 August 1982) is a British actress and film director. She appeared in ''Amazing Grace'', ''Atonement'', and ''Glorious 39'', and in the BBC series '' Emma'', '' The Hour'' and ''The Crimson Petal and the White''. In ...

in the Corelli role and also starred

Sam Neill Sir Nigel John Dermot "Sam" Neill (born 14 September 1947) is a New Zealand actor. Neill's near-50 year career has included leading roles in both dramas and blockbusters. Considered an "international leading man", he has been regarded as one o ...

and

Charlotte Rampling Tessa Charlotte Rampling (born 5 February 1946) is an English actress, known for her work in European arthouse films in English, French, and Italian. An icon of the Swinging Sixties, she began her career as a model. She was cast in the role ...

. It was directed by

François Ozon François Ozon (; born 15 November 1967) is a French film director and screenwriter. Ozon is considered one of the most important modern French filmmakers. His films are characterized by aesthetic beauty, sharp satirical humor and a free-wheeli ...

, who stated, "The character of Angel was inspired by Marie Corelli, a contemporary of

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is ...

and

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

's favourite writer. Corelli was one of the first writers to become a star, writing bestsellers for an adoring public. Today she has been largely forgotten, even in England."

Works

Novels

References

Notes

Sources

* * Carr, Barbara Comyns, ''Sisters by a River'' (London: Eyre & Spottiswoode, 1947; new edition by Virago Press 1985) *Coates, T. F. G. and R. S. Warren Bell. '' Marie Corelli: the Writer and the Woman''. George W. Jacobs & Co.: Philadelphia, 1903. Reprinted 1969 by Health Research, Mokelume Hill, CA. * * *Lyons, Martyn. 2011. ''Books: a living history''. Los Angeles: J. Paul Getty Museum. * *Ransom, Teresa, ''The Mysterious Miss Marie Corelli: Queen of Victorian Bestsellers'' (2013) *Scott, William Stuart, ''Marie Corelli: the story of a friendship'' (London: Hutchinson, 1955) *

Bibliography

*Ayres, Brenda; Maier, Sarah E. (Ed.): ''Reinventing Marie Corelli for the twenty-first century'', London, UK ; New York, NY : Anthem Press, 2019, *Bigland, Eileen ''Marie Corelli, the woman and the legend: a biography'', Jarrolds, London 1953 *Coates, T. F. G. and R. S. Warren Bell. '' Marie Corelli: the Writer and the Woman'', George W. Jacobs & Co.: Philadelphia, 1903. Reprinted 1969 by Health Research, Mokelume Hill, CA. *Federico, Annette R. ''Idol of Suburbia: Marie Corelli and Late-Victorian Literary Culture'', University Press of Virginia, Charlottesville, 2000 *Masters, Brian ''Now Barabbas was a rotter: the extraordinary life of Marie Corelli'', H. Hamilton, London, 1978 *Ransom, Teresa ''The Mysterious Miss Marie Corelli: Queen of Victorian Bestsellers'', Sutton, 1999 *Scott, William Stuart, ''Marie Corelli: the story of a friendship'', London: Hutchinson, 1955 *Vyver, Bertha ''Memoirs of Marie Corelli'', A. Rivers Ltd, 1930

External links

Marie Corelli Collection at Yale University Music Library
* *

(archived) * Marie Corelli Collection. General Collection. Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University.

Online editions

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Corelli, Marie 1855 births 1924 deaths 19th-century British novelists 19th-century British short story writers 19th-century English women writers 19th-century English writers 19th-century British women writers 20th-century English women writers 20th-century English novelists British women short story writers English fantasy writers English women novelists Victorian novelists Victorian women writers Women science fiction and fantasy writers Writers from London People from Warwickshire