Marguerite Steen
Encyclopedia
Marguerite Steen was a British
writer
, most popular in the 1930s and 1940s.
High School, at 19 she became a teacher in a private school. After three years she abandoned that career and went to London
to fulfill her ambition of working in the theatre. Failing to gain entry to the theatrical world, she accepted instead an offer to teach dance in Yorkshire
schools. This earned her a comfortable living (rising to over £500 a year) which enabled her to spend long periods travelling in France
and Spain
—the latter becoming her adopted homeland. In 1921, she managed to join the Fred Terry
/ Julia Neilson
drama company, at £3 per week, and spent three years touring with them. She was befriended by Ellen Terry
, and when she found herself unemployed in 1926, took her advice and wrote a novel (not her first, strictly speaking, as she had made an attempt at the age of 8). This work, The Gilt Cage, was published in 1927, and was followed by some 40 more books.
Very much at home among creative people, she would write biographies of the Terrys, of her friend Hugh Walpole
, of the 18th century poet and actress (and sometime mistress to the Prince of Wales) Mary 'Perdita' Robinson
, and of her own lover, the artist Sir William Nicholson
with whom she lived from the late 1920s until his death in 1949, and whom she would have married if his wife, from whom he formally separated in 1933, had been willing to grant a divorce. Marguerite had a fair artistic talent herself, and in the 1930s she also wrote a couple of plays, but her forte was the historical novel.
Her first major success was Matador (1934), for which she drew on her love of Spain, and of bullfighting. This was picked up by both the Book Society in Britain, and the Book of the Month Club
in the USA. Also a best-seller on both sides of the Atlantic was the massive slave-trade and Bristol shipping saga The Sun Is My Undoing (1941); this was the first part of a trilogy, but the remaining volumes were far less popular. Though never quite accepted by literary critics- Sun..., for example, was described as "vigorous but tinselly"- she was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature
in 1951. Her two volumes of autobiography, Looking Glass (1966) and Pier Glass (1968) offer some delightful views of the English creative set from the 1920s to the 1950s.
Her home at the time of her death was the cottage she had shared with Nicholson during the last years of his life, in the village of Blewbury
, Berkshire
, bought after their London home was destroyed by a Second World War bomb.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, most popular in the 1930s and 1940s.
Life
Daughter of Capt. George Connolly Benson (King's Shropshire Light Infantry) and Margaret Jones, Marguerite was adopted by Joseph and Margaret Jane Steen. Educated at a private school and subsequently, with much more success, at KendalKendal
Kendal, anciently known as Kirkby in Kendal or Kirkby Kendal, is a market town and civil parish within the South Lakeland District of Cumbria, England...
High School, at 19 she became a teacher in a private school. After three years she abandoned that career and went to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
to fulfill her ambition of working in the theatre. Failing to gain entry to the theatrical world, she accepted instead an offer to teach dance in Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
schools. This earned her a comfortable living (rising to over £500 a year) which enabled her to spend long periods travelling in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
—the latter becoming her adopted homeland. In 1921, she managed to join the Fred Terry
Fred Terry
Fred Terry was an English actor and theatrical manager. After establishing his reputation in London and in the provinces for a decade, he joined the company of Herbert Beerbohm Tree where he remained for four years, meeting his future wife, Julia Neilson...
/ Julia Neilson
Julia Neilson
Julia Neilson was an English actress best known for her numerous performances as Lady Blakeney in The Scarlet Pimpernel, for her roles in many tragedies and historical romances, and for her portrayal of Rosalind in a long-running production of As You Like It.After establishing her reputation in a...
drama company, at £3 per week, and spent three years touring with them. She was befriended by Ellen Terry
Ellen Terry
Dame Ellen Terry, GBE was an English stage actress who became the leading Shakespearean actress in Britain. Among the members of her famous family is her great nephew, John Gielgud....
, and when she found herself unemployed in 1926, took her advice and wrote a novel (not her first, strictly speaking, as she had made an attempt at the age of 8). This work, The Gilt Cage, was published in 1927, and was followed by some 40 more books.
Very much at home among creative people, she would write biographies of the Terrys, of her friend Hugh Walpole
Hugh Walpole
Sir Hugh Seymour Walpole, CBE was an English novelist. A prolific writer, he published thirty-six novels, five volumes of short stories, two plays and three volumes of memoirs. His skill at scene-setting, his vivid plots, his high profile as a lecturer and his driving ambition brought him a large...
, of the 18th century poet and actress (and sometime mistress to the Prince of Wales) Mary 'Perdita' Robinson
Mary Robinson (poet)
Mary Robinson was an English poet and novelist. During her lifetime she is known as 'the English Sappho'...
, and of her own lover, the artist Sir William Nicholson
William Nicholson (artist)
Sir William Newzam Prior Nicholson was an English painter of still-life, landscape and portraits, also known for his work as a wood-engraver, illustrator, author of children's books and designer for the theatre....
with whom she lived from the late 1920s until his death in 1949, and whom she would have married if his wife, from whom he formally separated in 1933, had been willing to grant a divorce. Marguerite had a fair artistic talent herself, and in the 1930s she also wrote a couple of plays, but her forte was the historical novel.
Her first major success was Matador (1934), for which she drew on her love of Spain, and of bullfighting. This was picked up by both the Book Society in Britain, and the Book of the Month Club
Book of the Month Club
The Book of the Month Club is a United States mail-order book sales club that offers a new book each month to customers.The Book of the Month Club is part of a larger company that runs many book clubs in the United States and Canada. It was formerly the flagship club of Book-of-the-Month Club, Inc...
in the USA. Also a best-seller on both sides of the Atlantic was the massive slave-trade and Bristol shipping saga The Sun Is My Undoing (1941); this was the first part of a trilogy, but the remaining volumes were far less popular. Though never quite accepted by literary critics- Sun..., for example, was described as "vigorous but tinselly"- she was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature
Royal Society of Literature
The Royal Society of Literature is the "senior literary organisation in Britain". It was founded in 1820 by George IV, in order to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". The Society's first president was Thomas Burgess, who later became the Bishop of Salisbury...
in 1951. Her two volumes of autobiography, Looking Glass (1966) and Pier Glass (1968) offer some delightful views of the English creative set from the 1920s to the 1950s.
Her home at the time of her death was the cottage she had shared with Nicholson during the last years of his life, in the village of Blewbury
Blewbury
Blewbury is a village and civil parish at the foot of the Berkshire Downs about south of Didcot. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire.-Prehistory:...
, Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
, bought after their London home was destroyed by a Second World War bomb.