Antonia Fraser facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Lady Antonia Fraser
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Fraser in 2010
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| Born | Antonia Margaret Caroline Pakenham 27 August 1932 London, England |
| Alma mater | Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford |
| Genre | Biography, detective fiction |
| Years active | 1969–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 6, including Rebecca Fraser and Flora Fraser |
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Lady Antonia Margaret Caroline Fraser is a famous British author. She writes about history, real-life stories (biographies), and detective mysteries. She was born Antonia Margaret Caroline Pakenham on August 27, 1932. She was married to the famous writer Harold Pinter, who won the Nobel Prize in Literature.
Contents
Family and Early Life
Lady Antonia Fraser is the oldest of eight children. Her parents were Frank Pakenham, 7th Earl of Longford, and Elizabeth Pakenham, Countess of Longford. Because her father was an Earl, she has the special title "Lady Antonia."
Religious Background
When she was a teenager, Lady Antonia and her brothers and sisters became Catholic. Her parents had also become Catholic earlier. Her mother's family were Unitarians, a faith that cares a lot about helping society. Lady Antonia has said that her father was from the Church of Ireland (Protestant) and her mother was Unitarian before they became Catholic.
Education and Youth
Lady Antonia went to school at the Dragon School and St Mary's School, Ascot. She then studied at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, just like her mother. Before going to Oxford in 1950, she was a "debutante." This meant she was introduced to society at special events in London.
Writing Career
Lady Antonia Fraser started her career working for a publisher called Weidenfeld & Nicolson. This company later published many of her own books.
Famous Historical Books
Her first big book was Mary, Queen of Scots (1969). After that, she wrote many other biographies, which are true stories about people's lives. These include Cromwell, Our Chief of Men (1973). In 1984, she won the Wolfson History Prize for her book The Weaker Vessel. This book looked at the lives of women in England during the 1600s.
She also wrote The Warrior Queens (1989), which tells the stories of powerful women leaders like Boadicea and Cleopatra. In 1992, she published The Six Wives of Henry VIII, about the famous English king's marriages.
Her book about King Charles II (1979) was very popular. It even influenced a TV show about the king. In 1996, she wrote The Gunpowder Plot: Terror and Faith in 1605. This book won two awards: the St. Louis Literary Award and the Crime Writers' Association Non-Fiction Gold Dagger.
Her biography Marie Antoinette: The Journey (2001) was turned into a movie called Marie Antoinette (2006). She also wrote Love and Louis XIV: The Women in the Life of the Sun King (2006).
Detective Novels
Besides history, Lady Antonia has written detective novels. Her most popular detective character is Jemima Shore. These books were made into a TV series called Jemima Shore Investigates in 1983.
Other Roles
Lady Antonia was the president of English International PEN from 1988 to 1989. This organization supports writers around the world. She also helped lead its committee for writers who were in prison. She has been a judge for the Enid McLeod Literary Prize, which she also won for her book Marie Antoinette. She is also a vice-president of the London Library.
Memoir
In 2010, Lady Antonia published her memoir, Must You Go? My Life with Harold Pinter. A memoir is a book about a part of someone's own life.
Personal Life
From 1956 to 1977, Lady Antonia was married to Sir Hugh Fraser. He was a politician and a member of Parliament. They had six children together: three sons (Benjamin, Damian, and Orlando) and three daughters (Rebecca Fraser, Flora Fraser, and Natasha Fraser-Cavassoni). All three of her daughters are also writers. Lady Antonia has 18 grandchildren.
A Dangerous Incident
In 1975, a dangerous incident happened near her home. A car bomb was placed under her husband's car. Luckily, it exploded when a neighbor, Gordon Hamilton Fairley, was walking his dog and noticed something unusual. He was sadly killed, but the Frasers and their visitor, Caroline Kennedy, were safe.
Marriage to Harold Pinter
In 1975, Lady Antonia began a relationship with the playwright Harold Pinter. They married in 1980 after his previous marriage ended. Harold Pinter passed away in 2008.
Lady Antonia still lives in her family home in London, where she continues to write. She is also a vice-president of the Royal Stuart Society.
Honours and Awards
Lady Antonia Fraser has received several important honours for her contributions to literature:
- She was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1999.
- She was promoted to Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 2011.
- She was appointed a Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour (CH) in 2018.
She has also won many awards for her books:
- James Tait Black Memorial Prize (1969), for Mary, Queen of Scots.
- Wolfson History Prize (1984), for The Weaker Vessel.
- Crime Writers' Association Macallan Gold Dagger for Non-Fiction (1996), for The Gunpowder Plot.
- St. Louis Literary Award from the Saint Louis University Library Associates.
- Historical Association Norton Medlicott Medal (2000).
- Enid McLeod Literary Prize (2001), for Marie Antoinette.
Works
Non-fiction works
- Mary Queen of Scots (1969)
- Dolls (1963)
- A History of Toys (1966)
- Cromwell, Our Chief of Men (1973)
- King James VI and I (1974)
- The Lives of the Kings and Queens of England (1975) [editor]
- King Charles II (1979)
- Heroes and Heroines (1980)
- The Weaker Vessel: Woman's Lot in Seventeenth-century England (1984)
- The Warrior Queens: Boadicea's Chariot (1988)
- The Six Wives of Henry VIII (1996)
- The Gunpowder Plot: Terror and Faith in 1605 (1996)
- Marie Antoinette (2001)
- Love and Louis XIV: The Women in the Life of the Sun King (2006)
- Must You Go? My Life with Harold Pinter (2010)
- Perilous Question: The Drama of the Great Reform Bill 1832 (2013)
- My History. A Memoir of Growing Up (2015)
- Our Israeli Diary: Of That Time, Of That Place (2017)
- The King and the Catholics: The Fight for Rights, 1829 (2018)
- The Case of the Married Woman: Caroline Norton: A 19th Century Heroine Who Wanted Justice for Women (2021)
- Caroline Lamb: A Free Spirit (2023)
Historical fiction
- King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table (1954)
- Robin Hood (1955)
Jemima Shore novels
- Quiet as a Nun (1977)
- The Wild Island (1978)
- A Splash of Red (1981)
- Cool Repentance (1982)
- Oxford Blood (1985)
- Jemima Shore's First Case (1986)
- Your Royal Hostage (1987)
- The Cavalier Case (1990)
- Jemima Shore at the Sunny Grave (1991)
- Political Death (1995)
- Quiet as a Nun / Tartan Tragedy / Splash of Red (omnibus) (2005)
- Jemima Shore on the Case (omnibus) (2006)
Editor
- Scottish Love Poems (1975)
- The Lives of the Kings and Queens of England (1975)
- Love Letters (1976)
- The Pleasure of Reading (1992)
- A Red Rose or A Satin Heart (2010)
Images for kids
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Fraser in 2010
See also
In Spanish: Antonia Fraser para niños
- Earl of Longford
