Francesca Maria Steele Explained

Francesca Maria Steele
Birth Name:Fanny Maria Steele
Birth Date:21 April 1848
Birth Place:Dalston, Hackney, London, England
Death Place:Stroud, Gloucestershire, England
Nationality:English
Other Names:Darley Dale
Occupation:Novelist and biographer
Years Active:1878–1925
Known For:Biographies of saints
Notable Works:The convents of Great Britain and Ireland

Francesca Maria Steele (21 April 184810 August 1931) was an English novelist, historian, and biographer, who began writing to support her family. She began her writing career with juvenile fiction; she later moved into adult fiction, using the pseudonym Darley Dale for her fiction writing. Intensely religious, she converted to Roman Catholicism in 1887 and later wrote several books on religious topics.

Early life

Steele was born in London on 21 April 1848.[1] [2] [3] [4] Her parents were Robert Peter Steele (181610 May 1884),[5] the secretary of the Royal Assurance Company and Frances Mary Francis (8 February 18183 October 1902).[6]

Steele was educated at Bedford College, London,[7] the first higher education college for women in the United Kingdom. Steele lived in Jersey from 1874 to 1884.[8] She began writing in Jersey, with The Jersey Boys in 1878. Her father died on 10 May 1884, and his pension died with him. He had lost everything else in a bank collapse, so Steele's mother was now dependent on what Steele could earn from her writing.

Steele moved to Gloucestershire with her mother and sisters. Steele and her sister Alice Mary (1856c. 1935) converted to Roman Catholicism in 1877.[9] Alice went on to become a nun and was the sister in charge at Tyburn Convent at 6 Hyde Park Place, in London at the time of the 1911 census. Alice was still in charge there twenty years later when Steele died.[10]

Steele had already moved to Loretto House at Stroud in Gloucestershire when her mother died there on 3 October 1902. She was still there nearly thirty years later when she died.[11] Even after her mother died, Steele was still supporting her youngest sister, Emma Caroline, when she applied to the Royal Literary Fund in 1914.

Name variants

Steele was registered at birth and baptised as Fanny Maria Steele, and she used this name up until the 1891 census. By the 1901 census she was using the name Florence Steel, but soon changed to Francesca Maria Steele. She used this name for the publication of The Convents of Great Britain in 1902. In the 1911 Census, she used that form of her name also, and continued to do so. For her writing, she used the pseudonym Darley Dale for all of her fiction, but used her real name for her writing on religious topics.[12]

Works

Steele's work can be divided into three types:

The sources for the table are:

There seem to be no works by Steele at Project Gutenberg, so the table indicated those cases where online versions of the texts are available.

Books by Steele! No !! Year !! Title!! Illustrator !! Type !! Publisher !! Pages !! Notes
1 1878 The Jersey Boysjuv. RTS, London [15]
2 1879 Helen Leslie; or, "A Little Leaven"juv. Frederick Warne & Co, London 192 pages, (8º) [16]
3 1880 A Tearful Victory. A story for childrenjuv. SPCK, London 128 pages, (8º)
4 1881 The black donkey; or, The Guernsey boysjuv. SPCK, London cm.16
5 1882 Little Bricksjuv. James Nisbet & Co, London 231 pages, (8º) [17] [18]
6 1882 The Family Failingjuv. Blackie & Son, London 221 pages, (8º) [19] [20]
7 1882 Cissy's Troublesjuv. James Nisbet & Co, London 233 pages, (8º) [21]
8 1883 Spoilt Guyjuv. James Nisbet & Co, London cm.18
9 1884 Seven sons; or, The story of Malcolm and his brothersjuv. James Nisbet & Co, London cm.18
10 1885 Fanny's king: and other storiesjuv. Blackie & Son, London 64 p., [1] leaf of plates, ill., 15.2 cm.
11 1885 The wild marsh-marigoldsjuv. London cm.15
12 1885 The great auk's eggsCharles Whymper juv. RTS, London 158,[2]p., [1] leaf of plates, ill., 18 cm.
13 1886 Oughts and Crosses: or, Mr. Holland's conquestjuv. J. Nisbet & Co, London 269 pages, (8º)
14 1886 Fair Katherineadt. Hurst & Blackett, London 3 volumes, (8º)
15 1886 Swallow-tails and skippersLucy Francis juv. RTS, London 158 p., 1 col. ill., 19 cm. [22]
16 1887 The glory of the seajuv. RTS, London cm.18
17 1887 The Shepherd's Fairy: a pastoralejuv. RTS, London 208 pages, (8º)
18 1889 Mr. Mygale's Hobby: a story about spidersCharles Whymper juv. RTS, London 192 pages, (8º)
19 1890 Noah's ark: a tale of the Norfolk Broadsjuv. Frederick Warne and Co, London 280, [8] p., ill., 20 cm.
20 1892 The little doctor: or, The magic of natureAlexander Monro juv. Wells Gardner, Darton & Co, London 209, [7] p., ill., 20 cm.
21 1892 The Village Blacksmithadt. Hutchinson & Co, London 3 volumes, (8º) [23] [24] [25] [26]
22 1893 Lottie's wooing, by Darley Daleadt. Hutchinson & Co, London 3 vols. cm.19 [27] [28] [29]
23 1894 The Game of Life. A noveladt. Hutchinson & Co, London 3 volumes, (8º)
24 1896 Willy's Flower.juv. Blackie & Son, London 16 pages, (16º) [30]
25 1896 A Modern Comedy of Errorsadt. [31]
26 1897 Stella's story: a Venetian talejuv. J. S. Virtue and Co, London 248 p., 8 ill., 20 cm. [32]
27 1897 Chloeadt. Bliss, Sands & Co, London 352 pages, (8º) [33]
28 1898 Cupid's Crooked Waysadt. [34] [35]
29 1899 Justice Meadows: or the Golden Tree of Knowledgeadt. [36] [37]
30 1902 The convents of Great Britainrel. Sands & Co, London xxv, 320 pages, 25 leaves of plates, portraits (black and white), 19 cm
31 1902 The Daughters of Jobadt. R. A. Everett & Co, London 390 pages, (8º)
32 1902 Monasteries and Religious House of Great Britain and Ireland. With an appendix on the religious houses in Americarel. R. & T. Washbourne, London xv, 267 pages, (8º)
33 1903 The House that Jack builtadt. R. A. Everett & Co, London 313 pages, (8º)
34 1903 Anchoresses of the Westrel. Sands & Co, London xxii, 261 pages, (8º)
35 1903 The Flighty Duchessadt. [38]
36 1904 Brother Francis. A noveladt. R. A. Everett & Co, London 316 pages, (8º)
37 1905 The Mirror of St. Edmund. Done into modern English.rel. Burns & Oates, London x, 80 pages, (16º)
38 1907 Naomi's transgressionadt. Frederick Warne and Co, London vi, 306, [6] p., [6] l. of plates, ill., 20 cm. [39]
39 1908 The story of the English Poperel. Macdonald and Evans, London 177 p, col. ill, 17 cm. [40]
40 1909 St. Bridget of Swedenrel. R. & T. Washbourne, London xxviii, 140 p., frontis., 8º.
41 1910 The story of the Bridgettinesrel. R. & T. Washbourne, London 19 cm.
42 1910 The Beautiful Queen, Joanna I. of Naplesrel. Hutchinson & Co, London vii, 347 pages, (8º)
43 1914 The life and visions of St. Hildegarderel. Heath Cranton, London xiv, 246 p., frontis., 19 cm.
44 1921 The Life of Saint Walburgarel. Heath Cranton, London 189 pages, (8º)
45 1922 Old Mrs. Grahamadt. Hutchinson & Co, London 286 p., 8º.
46 1923 The Master of the Houseadt. Heath Cranton, London 290 p., C
47 1925 The convents of Great Britain and Irelandrel. London 8º.
48 1928 The Little Widow, 2nd edition adt.

Example of illustration of one of Steele's books

The following four illustrations by AFB were produced for The Family Failing (1883) by Steele (courtesy of The British Library) Typically, at the time, when it came to novels, only juvenile fiction was illustrated, although serial stories were often illustrated, even if they were for adults.

Later life

At the time of the 1911 Census, Steele was living with her sister Emma Caroline at Loretto House in Stroud. Whatever income she had from her writing, it was obviously not enough as she applied for assistance from the Royal Literary Fund in 1914. In her later years, Steele was an invalid. She died on 16 August 1931, leaving a relatively modest estate of less than £400. Her sister Emma Caroline was her executor, and only survived her sister by four years, dying on 9 December 1935.[41]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: The Catholic Encyclopedia and its Makers . . 165 . 1917 . 2021-10-01 . archive.org.
  2. Book: Ancestry.com . London, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1917 . London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; Reference Number: p79/pet/001 . 2010 . Ancestry.com . Provo, Utah .
  3. Web site: Index entry. 14 May 2020. FreeBMD. ONS.
  4. The index of births shows that Steele was born in the second quarter of 1848. However, she was baptised in St Peter's Church, West Hackney on 26 May 1848
  5. Book: Jersey Heritage . Jersey Church of England Parish Registers: 1862-1896 . Reference Number: G/C/09/A4/3 . 1885-05-14 . Jersey Heritage . St. Helier .
  6. Web site: Wills and Probates 1858-1996: Pages for Steele and Year of Death 1902 . Find a Will Service . 2020-05-14 .
  7. Book: A. & C. Black Ltd. . Who Was Who: Volume III 1929-1940: A Companion to Who's Who Containing the Biographies of Those Who Died Diring the Period 1929-1940 . 4th . Steele, Francesca Maria (Fanny) . III . 1284 . 1967 . Adam and Charles Black . London .
  8. Book: Kemp . Sandra . Sandra Kemp . Mitchell . Charlotte . Trotter . David . David Trotter (academic) . Edwardian Fiction: An Oxford Companion . Wynne, May . 88 . 1997 . Oxford University Press . Oxford .
  9. Web site: Author: Francesca Maria Steele (1849–1931) . At the Circulating Library: A database of Victorian Fiction 1837-1901 . 2019-12-31 . 2020-05-13 .
  10. Miss F. M. Steele . The Times . 11556 . 12 . 1931-08-21 .
  11. Web site: Wills and Probates 1858-1996: Pages for Steele and Year of Death 1902 . Find a Will Service . 2020-05-14 .
  12. Book: Room, Adrian . https://books.google.com/books?id=eSIhzKnNUf4C&pg=PA129 . Dictionary of Pseudonyms: 13,000 Assumed Names and Their Origins . 5th . Darley Dale . 9780786457632 . 129 . 2014-01-10 . McFarland & Company, Inc. . Jefferson, North Carolina . 2021-10-01 . Google Books.
  13. It is not always clear what category Steele's books fit into, and the list in Who Was Who does not indicate the category for all of her books, and it is possible that there are volumes that are not listed here.
  14. Book: Incorporated Society of Authors (Great Britain) . The cost of production : being specimens of the pages and type in more common use, with estimates of the cost of composition, printing, paper, binding, etc., for the production of a book . VI. Children's Books . 59 . 1891 . The Incorporated Society of Authors . London .
  15. Title from Who Was Who.
  16. A book in Warne's Home Circle Library.
  17. On-line at the Internet Archive.
  18. Web site: Search of Metadata for Creator:(Francesca Maria Steele) . . 2020-05-14 .
  19. Year of publication from Who Was Who. On-line at the Internet Archive and at The British Library.
  20. Book: Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) . A Family Failing . 1883 . Blackie and Son . London . 2020-05-14 .
  21. Year of publication from Who Was Who.
  22. Year of publication from Who Was Who. On-line at the Internet Archive.
  23. On-line at The British Library.
  24. Book: Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) . The Village Blacksmith . One . 1892 . Hutchinson & Co. . London . 2020-05-14 .
  25. Book: Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) . The Village Blacksmith . Two . 1892 . Hutchinson & Co. . London . 2020-05-14 .
  26. Book: Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) . The Village Blacksmith . Three . 1892 . Hutchinson & Co. . London . 2020-05-14 .
  27. Book: Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) . Lottie's Wooing . One . 1893 . Hutchinson & Co. . London . 2020-05-14 .
  28. Book: Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) . Lottie's Wooing . Two . 1893 . Hutchinson & Co. . London . 2020-05-14 .
  29. Book: Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) . Lottie's Wooing . Three . 1893 . Hutchinson & Co. . London . 2020-05-14 .
  30. Extracted from Fanny's King, and other stories.
  31. Title from Who Was Who, Serialised in London Society.
  32. Book: Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) . Stella's Story. A Venetian tale . 1887 . J. S. Virtue & Co. . London . 2020-05-14 .
  33. Book: Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) . Cloe . 1887 . Bliss, Sands & Co. . London . 2020-05-14 .
  34. Title from Who Was Who, Ran as a serial in the Glasgow Weekly Herald.
  35. News: Advert for the Glasgow Weekly Herald . . 9 . 1898-11-17 . 2021-10-01 . Newspapers.com.
  36. Title from Who Was Who, ran as a serial in The Englishwoman.
  37. The May Magazines . Western Times . Tuesday 02 May 1899 . 7 . 1899-05-02 .
  38. Title from Who Was Who. No other information found on this title.
  39. Who Was Who lists this as an adult novel, but the presence of six illustrations may suggest that it is juvenile fiction.
  40. Part of the publisher's St. Nicholas series.
  41. Web site: Wills and Probates 1858-1996: Pages for Steele and Year of Death 1936 . Find a Will Service . 2020-05-14 .