Regina Maria Roche (1764–1845) is considered a minor

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

novelist, encouraged by the pioneering

Ann Radcliffe Ann Radcliffe (née Ward; 9 July 1764 – 7 February 1823) was an English novelist and a pioneer of Gothic fiction. Her technique of explaining apparently supernatural elements in her novels has been credited with gaining respectability for G ...

. However, she was a bestselling author in her own time. The popularity of her third novel, ''The Children of the Abbey'', rivalled that of

's ''

The Mysteries of Udolpho ''The Mysteries of Udolpho'', by Ann Radcliffe, appeared in four volumes on 8 May 1794 from G. G. and J. Robinson of London. Her fourth and most popular novel, ''The Mysteries of Udolpho'' tells of Emily St. Aubert, who suffers misadventures th ...

''.

Life

Born Regina Maria Dalton in

Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

, Ireland in 1764.Albert Power, "Regina Maria Roche (1764–1845)", ''The Green Book: Writings on Irish Gothic, Supernatural and Fantastic Literature'', No. 11, 2018, pp. 35–41. JSTOR
/ref> Her father, Blundel Dalton, was a captain in the British 40th Regiment. Her family moved to

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

. After marrying Ambrose Roche in 1794, she moved to England. Her first two novels were published under her maiden name, before the success of ''The Children of the Abbey'' and ''Clermont''. Both were translated into French and Spanish and went through several editions. However, after her fifth novel, ''The Nocturnal Visit'', appeared in 1800, Roche suffered financial difficulties, having fallen afoul of a duplicitous solicitor. She did not write again until 1807, when she received aid from the Royal Literary Fund. She then wrote 11 more novels, most of them set in rural Ireland. None of these matched her earlier successes. After her husband's death in 1829, she returned to Waterford. After bouts of depression, Roche died in relative obscurity in her native town at the age of 81. ''

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'' ...

'' obituary calls her a "distinguished writer hohad retired from the world and the world had forgotten her. But many young hearts, now old must remember the effect upon them of her graceful and touching compositions."

Popularity

'' The Children of the Abbey'', a sentimental Gothic Romance, was one of the most popular novels of the 1790s. Her '' Clermont'' was Roche's only full attempt at writing a truly Gothic novel. It has a decidedly darker in tone than anything else she wrote.Macklem, Lisa. "Regina Maria Roche: The Children of the Abbey", Dublin 2019.
/ref> Both novels went through several editions and were translated into French and Spanish. ''Clermont'' was one of the

Northanger Horrid Novels ''Northanger Abbey'' () is a coming-of-age novel and a satire of Gothic novels written by Jane Austen. Austen was also influenced by Charlotte Lennox's ''The Female Quixote'' (1752). ''Northanger Abbey'' was completed in 1803, the first o ...

satirised by

Jane Austen Jane Austen (; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for her six major novels, which interpret, critique, and comment upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots of ...

in her novel ''

Northanger Abbey ''Northanger Abbey'' () is a coming-of-age Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the ...

''.

Bibliography

*''The Vicar of Lansdowne: or, Country Quarters'', 1789 *''The Maid of the Hamlet. A Tale'', 1793 *'' The Children of the Abbey: a Tale'', 1796 *'' Clermont: a Tale'', 1798 *''Nocturnal Visit: a Tale'', 1800 *''Alvandown Vicarage'', 1807 *''The Discarded Son: or, Haunt of the Banditti; a Tale'', 1807 *''The Houses of Osma and Almeria: or, Convent of St. Ildefonso; a Tale'', 1810 *''The Monastery of St. Columb: or, The Atonement; a Novel'', 1814 *''Trecothick Bower: or, The Lady of the West Country; a Tale'', 1814 *''The Munster Cottage Boy: a Tale'', 1820 *''Bridal of Dunamore and Lost and Won. Two Tales'', 1823 *''The Tradition of the Castle: or, Scenes in the Emerald Isle'', 1824 *''The Castle Chapel: a Romantic Tale'', 1825 *''Contrast'', 1828 *''The Nun's Picture'', 1834

References

External links

* * *
Book description of ''Clermont'' (Valancourt Books)
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Roche, Regina Maria 1764 births 1845 deaths Irish expatriates in England 18th-century English novelists 19th-century English novelists 18th-century Irish novelists 19th-century Irish novelists 18th-century British women writers 19th-century English women writers People from County Waterford Writers from London Irish horror writers English horror writers Irish women novelists Women horror writers English women novelists Writers of Gothic fiction 18th-century English women 18th-century English people