Writer and collector. Youngest son of Sir Robert Walpole. His gothic novel "The Castle of Otranto"' was published in 1764. But his passion was his gothic creation, his house at Strawberry Hill, which is open to the public and well worth a visit.
His parents separated before his birth and he was brought up in Arlington Street by his much loved mother. Weak and effeminate he became an MP and used politics as an easy way to fund his life of leisure. This involved friendships with many other young men with similar aesthetic interests. His relationship with Thomas Gray was particularly jealous and difficult. He never married but did invent the word 'serendipity'.
This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Horatio ('Horace') Walpole, 4th Earl of Orford
Commemorated ati
George Pub
The George The George was founded in 1723 as a coffee house, became Georges ...
Robert & Horace Walpole
Greater London Council Sir Robert Walpole, 1676 - 1745, Prime Minister, and ...
This section lists the memorials created by the subject on this page:
Horatio ('Horace') Walpole, 4th Earl of Orford
Creations i
King of Corsica
The weather-worn stone above this plaque is, we guess, the original graveston...
Other Subjects
Kit-Cat Club
18th century London club with political (Whig) and literary interests. Tending to the clandestine it met, at different periods, at the Trumpet Tavern, the Fountain Tavern and at Barn Elms. In sum...
Group, Community / Clubs, Literature, Politics & Administration
Francis Bret Harte
American writer, best know for his accounts of pioneering life in California. Born New York. Came to London in 1885 via Germany and Glasgow. Buried at Frimley, Surrey. Some sources, contradicti...
C. S. Forester
Novelist. Born Cecil Lewis Troughton Smith in Cairo. He adopted the Forester pseudonym when his writing career began in 1923. Best known for the 'Hornblower' series of novels, he also wrote 'The Af...
Person, Literature, Egypt, USA
Jerome K. Jerome
Novelist and playwright. Born Jerome Clapp Jerome at Bradford Street, Walsall, Staffordshire. He supposedly changed his middle name to Klapka in homage to General George Klapka, a hero of the Hunga...
Washington Irving
American writer who is best known for his short stories 'The Legend of Sleepy Hollow' and 'Rip Van Winkle'. Born 3 April 1783 in the USA, he travelled to Europe coming to England in 1815. He also ...
Person, Literature, Politics & Administration, Germany, Spain, USA