Clotilde Graves facts for kids
Clotilde Augusta Inez Mary Graves (born June 3, 1863 – died December 3, 1932) was an Irish writer. She was also known by her pen name, Richard Dehan. She became a very successful writer of plays in both London and New York City.
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About Clotilde Graves
Clotilde Graves was born on June 3, 1863, at Buttevant Castle in County Cork, Ireland. She was the third daughter of Major William Henry Graves and Antoinette Deane.
When she was nine years old, her family moved from Ireland to England. Because her father was in the military, she saw a lot of army life. This experience, along with meeting many naval and military friends in England, helped her later when she wrote her novel Between Two Thieves.
Early Life and Education
Clotilde went to a convent school in Lourdes, France. She became a Catholic and later moved to London. There, she studied art in Bloomsbury. She was quite unique for her time in London society. She wore her hair short, dressed in a more masculine style, and smoked cigarettes in public. These things were considered very unusual back then.
In 1884, Clotilde Graves became an art student. She worked at the British Museum galleries and the Royal Female School of Art. To earn money, she also did journalism, like drawing funny little pictures for comic papers.
Starting a Writing Career
Clotilde soon stopped studying art and joined a traveling theater group. Her first chance to write a play came in 1888. She was back in London, working hard as a journalist, when someone needed extra songs for a pantomime play. Clotilde ended up writing the pantomime called Puss in Boots.
Later, she wrote a serious play called Nitocris, which was performed at Drury Lane theater. Another one of her plays, The Mother of Three, was not only well-written but also made a lot of money.
By 1900, she lived in Hampstead, London. She had a wonderful collection of Chinese and Japanese items. She also loved to fish with a fly rod and rode a tricycle, which was a bit unusual for women at the time.
Becoming a Novelist
Clotilde Graves started writing stories for magazines like World and Punch. She became a very successful writer of plays in London and New York. She was well-known in the early 1900s.
In 1911, when she was 46, her first novel was published. She used the pen name Richard Dehan for this book. Even though people knew her as a playwright under her own name, she chose a different name for her novels. Her first novel was called The Dop Doctor (or One Braver Thing in America).
The book was made into a film in 1915. The movie caused some problems in South Africa and was eventually banned. The story is about a character who faces many challenges and tries to regain his honor during the Siege of Mafeking in South Africa.
Two years later, in 1913, she published another novel called Between Two Thieves. A main character in this book is based on the famous nurse, Florence Nightingale, called Ada Merling in the story. Clotilde worked on this book for a year, rewriting it to make the story even better.
Clotilde Graves passed away on December 3, 1932, at a convent in Hatch End, England.
Published Works
Novels
- A Field of Tares, 1891.
- Dragon's Teeth, 1891.
- Maids in a Market Garden, 1894.
- A Well Meaning Woman, 1896.
- The Dop Doctor, 1910.
- One Braver Thing, 1910.
- Between Two Thieves, 1912.
- The Headquarter Recruit, and Other Stories, 1913.
- The Cost of Wings, 1914. (A collection of short stories.)
- Off Sandy Hook, 1915.
- The Man of Iron, 1915.
- A Gilded Vanity, 1916.
- Earth to Earth, 1916.
- That Which Hath Wings, 1918.
- A Sailor's Home and Other Stories, 1919.
- The Eve of Pascua And Other Stories, 1920.
- The Villa of the Peacock And Other Stories, 1921.
- The Just Steward, 1922.
- The Sower of the Wind, 1927.
- Lovers of the Market Place, 1928.
- Shallow Seas, 1930.
- The Lovers Battle.
- Under the Hermes.
Plays
- Nitocris
- Drury Lane Pantomime, Puss in Boots
- Dr. And Mrs. Neill
- A Mother of Three, 1896.
- A Matchmaker
- The Bishop's Eye
- The Forest Lovers
- A Maker of Comedies
- The Bond of Nikon
- A Tenement Tragedy
