Francis Lathom facts for kids
Francis Lathom (born July 14, 1774 – died May 19, 1832) was a British writer of spooky stories, known as gothic novels, and plays.
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Who Was Francis Lathom?
Francis Lathom was born in Rotterdam, Netherlands, on July 14, 1774. His father worked for the East India Company. Around 1777, his family moved back to England and settled near Norwich.
Early Life and First Plays
Lathom joined the Norwich Stock Company, a theatre group, in 1791. This is when he started his writing career. He was a very talented writer from a young age. He began writing plays before he was 18.
His first play, All in a Bustle, was performed in Norwich in 1795. He wrote six more plays after that. One of his plays, The Dash of the Day (1800), was very popular. It was printed three times in Norwich and also in Dublin.
Famous Gothic Novels
Lathom's first novel was The Castle of Ollada (1795). It was published without his name by Minerva Press. This book, like many of his later Gothic novels, was inspired by writers like Horace Walpole and Ann Radcliffe.
Sometimes, Lathom included scary and bloody scenes in his books. But usually, he preferred to explain any supernatural events. This was similar to Ann Radcliffe's style.
His most famous novel is The Midnight Bell (1798). It is considered his best gothic novel. It's also famous because Jane Austen mentioned it. She listed it as one of "the horrid novels" in her book Northanger Abbey. Lathom wrote many more gothic novels. They all had exciting titles, like Astonishment!!! and The Fatal Vow.
Beyond Gothic Stories
Francis Lathom didn't just write gothic novels. About half of his books were different. Some were funny stories about his time, called contemporary satire. Others tried to be like the historical novels of Walter Scott.
One of his books, Men and Manners (1799), was called a masterpiece by Montague Summers. Summers thought it was as good as books by Dickens. Another book, Very Strange, But Very True! (1803), sounds like a gothic novel. But it's actually a very funny story. It's still amusing even after more than 200 years.
A Pioneer in Writing
Lathom achieved two important things as a novelist. First, he was one of the first writers of historical fiction. His historical romances, like The Mysterious Freebooter; or, The Days of Queen Bess (1806), mixed facts and made-up stories about Queen Elizabeth. These books came out before the more famous historical novels by Walter Scott.
Later Life
Not much is known about Lathom's personal life. In 1797, he married Diana Ganning. She was the daughter of a rich lawyer from Norfolk. They had four children.
In 1810, Lathom left Norwich and stopped writing. The reason for this is not known. He later separated from his wife. Lathom seemed to travel a lot. He visited New York and Philadelphia in America. He also traveled in France and Italy.
He eventually settled in a rural part of Scotland with the Rennie family. Francis Lathom died in Aberdeenshire in 1832. He was buried in Fyvie churchyard. His gravestone used the name 'Mr James Francis'.
See also
- List of Minerva Press authors
- Minerva Press
