Walter Starkie facts for kids

Walter Fitzwilliam Starkie (born August 9, 1894 – died November 2, 1976) was an Irish scholar, writer, and musician. He was especially known for his travel books, like Raggle-Taggle (1933), Spanish Raggle-Taggle (1934), and Don Gypsy (1936).

He was also famous for translating Spanish books and for being an expert on the Romani people, often called Gypsies. He could speak the Romani language very well.

Early Life and Music

Walter Starkie was born in Ballybrack, a town in County Dublin, Ireland. His father, William Joseph Myles Starkie, was a well-known Greek scholar. Walter grew up in a home filled with writers, artists, and academics.

He went to Shrewsbury School and Trinity College, Dublin. He studied classics, history, and political science, graduating in 1920 with top honors. Walter was also a talented musician. In 1913, he won first prize for violin at the Royal Irish Academy of Music. His violin teacher, Achille Simonetti, had even been taught by Camillo Sivori, who was the only student of the famous musician Niccolo Paganini.

In 1926, Walter became a professor at Trinity College, teaching Spanish and Italian. One of his students there was the famous writer Samuel Beckett.

During World War I, Walter went to Italy because of his health. There, he helped entertain British soldiers. After the war, he met five Hungarian Romani prisoners of war and helped them make fiddles. He became a "bloodbrother" to one of them, named Farkas, and promised to visit him in Hungary someday. This promise greatly influenced his life. In Italy, he also met Italia Augusta Porchietti, a nurse and singer. They got married in 1921 and had two children, Landi and Alma.

Work at the Abbey Theatre

In 1927, Walter Starkie became a director at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin, invited by the famous poet W.B. Yeats. The theatre had faced some disagreements, and Walter helped to sort things out.

In 1928, while Walter was away, the theatre board turned down a play by Seán O'Casey, a well-known writer. This caused a lot of discussion, and O'Casey stopped working with the Abbey Theatre. Many people felt that losing O'Casey was a big blow to the theatre.

Later, the board also rejected a play by Denis Johnston. Walter had to deliver the bad news, writing "The Old Lady Says NO" on the play's title page, which Johnston then used as the new title for his play. This play was later very successful at another theatre in Dublin.

When World War II began, Walter was sent to Madrid, Spain, as a representative for the British Council. This meant he left his work at the Abbey Theatre in 1942. He then joined the board of directors at the Gate Theatre in Dublin.

British Institute in Madrid

In Spain, Walter Starkie founded and became the first director of the British Institute in Madrid (1940–1954). He also opened branches in other Spanish cities like Barcelona and Seville. The Institute was supported by the British Council and aimed to share British culture through talks and exhibitions during World War II. This helped Spain stay neutral in the war.

Walter had promised not to write new books during the war, but Spain became a safe place for people escaping from all over Europe, including many Romani people. So, he still met with them. The British Institute became a welcoming place for Spanish thinkers and artists. Walter organized a concert by a famous pianist, Rudolf Firkušný, which brought together many important people in Madrid.

During the war, Walter also helped organize a secret route through the Pyrenees mountains for British airmen who had been shot down over France. He and his wife even used their apartment as a safe house for escaping prisoners of war and Jewish refugees.

From 1947 to 1956, Walter was a professor at the Complutense University of Madrid. In 1954, he was honored by Trinity College, Dublin. After leaving the British Institute, he taught at several universities in the United States, including the University of California, Los Angeles (1961–1970).

After retiring, Walter and his wife, Italia Augusta, returned to Madrid. He passed away there on November 2, 1976. They are both buried in the British Cemetery in Madrid.

His Writings

Walter Starkie became famous for his travels and was even called a "modern-day gypsy" by Time Magazine. He wrote about his adventures traveling with his fiddle and following the Romani people in books like Raggle Taggle, Spanish Raggle Taggle, and Don Gypsy. These books share his observations of Romani life, offering interesting insights into their nomadic way of life.

A writer named Julian Moynahan once said about Walter Starkie: "Many lives have been more interesting and enviable in the telling than the living, but not so here. Walter Starkie chose and enjoyed a lifelong freedom." Walter was also the President of the Gypsy Lore Society from 1962 to 1973.

Besides his travel books, Walter translated many Spanish plays and books. He published a translation of Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes, a very famous Spanish novel. His translations are known for being very accurate.

Books by Walter Starkie

• Jacinto Benavente (1924)
• Luigi Pirandello (1926)
• Raggle-Taggle: Adventures with a Fiddle in Hungary and Romania (1933)
• Spanish Raggle-Taggle: Adventures with a Fiddle in Northern Spain (1934)
• Don Gypsy: Adventures with a Fiddle in Barbary, Andulusia and La Mancha (1936)
• The Waveless Plain: An Italian Autobiography (1938)
• Grand Inquisitor (1940)
• Semblanza de Cervantes y Shakespeare (1946)
• In Sara's Tents (1953)
• The Road to Santiago: Pilgrims of St. James (1957)
• Spain: A Musician's Journey Through Time and Space (1958)
• Scholars and Gypsies: An Autobiography (1963)

Books Translated by Walter Starkie

• Tiger Juan – Ramon Perez de Ayala (1933)
• The Spaniards in their History – Ramon Menendez Pidal (1950)
• Don Quixote – Miguel de Cervantes (1954 abridged, and 1964 unabridged)
• The Deceitful Marriage and other Exemplary Novels – Cervantes (1963)
• Eight Spanish Plays of the Golden Age (1964)

Awards and Honors

Walter Starkie received many awards for his work, including:

• Knight of the Order of Alfonso XII (1928)
• Knight of the Legion of Honour (1931)
• Knight of the Order of the Crown of Italy (1933)
• Commander of the Order of the British Empire (1948)
• Knight of the Order of Isabella the Catholic
• Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (1954)

See also

In Spanish: Walter Starkie para niños