George I and Horatio Walpole 4th Earl of Orford 1717 1797 English art historian man of letters antiquarian Whig politician
Horatio Walpole, 4th Earl of Orford (24 September 1717 – 2 March 1797) was an English art historian, man of letters, antiquarian and Whig politician. He is now largely remembered for Strawberry Hill, the home he built in Twickenham, south-west London where he revived the Gothic style some decades before his Victorian successors, and for his Gothic novel, The Castle of Otranto. Along with the book, his literary reputation rests on his Letters, which are of significant social and political interest. He was the son of Sir Robert Walpole, and cousin of the 1st Viscount Nelson. Strawberry Hill had its own printing press which supported Horace Walpole's intensive literary activity. In 1764, not using his own press, he anonymously published his Gothic novel, The Castle of Otranto, claiming on its title page that it was a translation "from the Original Italian of Onuphirio Muralto". The second edition's preface, according to James Watt, "has often been regarded as a manifesto for the modern Gothic romance, stating that his work, now subtitled 'A Gothic Story', sought to restore the qualities of imagination and invention to contemporary fiction". However, there is a playfulness in the prefaces to both editions and in the narration within the text itself. The novel opens with the son of Manfred (the Prince of Otranto) being crushed under a massive helmet that appears as a result of supernatural causes. However, that moment, along with the rest of the unfolding plot, includes a mixture of both ridiculous and sublime supernatural elements. The plot finally reveals how Manfred's family is tainted in a way that served as a model for successive Gothic plots. From 1762 on, Walpole published his Anecdotes of Painting in England, based on George Vertue's manuscript notes. His memoirs of the Georgian social and political scene, though heavily biased, are a useful primary source for historians.
Size: 2990px × 4502px
Photo credit: © SOTK2011 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: -fashioned, 1717, 1797, 1800, 19th, 2d, 4th, academic, age, aged, ancient, antiquarian, antique, antiquity, art, artistic, black, book, bw, bygone, castle, century, classical, copy, crowned, cut, cut-, drawing, earl, embossed, emperor, empire, english, engrave, engraved, engraver, engraving, etching, expression, figure, formal, front, frontispiece, george, gothic, graphic, hand, head, heritage, hill, historian, historic, historical, history, horatio, illustrated, illustration, image, imperial, king, letters, majesty, man, master, monarch, monotone, national, nineteenth, notable, obscure, obsolete, olden, orford, original, otranto, paper, period, pictorial, picture, politic, politician, portrait, potentate, pre, press, prince, print, printed, printing, proof, publication, publicity, rare, real, realism, realistic, reference, regal, relief, replica, represent, representation, repro, reproduce, reproduction, retro, romantic, royal, ruler, social, sovereign, standard, steel, strawberry, studio, style, teach, time, title, tool, topic, topical, tract, twickenham, unusual, victoria, victorian, vintage, walpole, whig, white
