George Henry Borrow English writer, novelist Date of Birth: 05.07.1803 Country: Great Britain

1. Biography of George Henry Borrow
2. Early Life and Education
3. The Influence of Travel
4. The Literary Path
5. Later Life and Legacy

Biography of George Henry Borrow

George Henry Borrow was an English writer, novelist, and author of numerous novels and travel notes, which were based on his own travels across Europe. During his journeys, Borrow developed close ties with European Gypsies, who play a prominent role in his works. His most famous work is the book 'The Bible in Spain', which was so popular that it outsold Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol'. 'Lavengro', published in 1851, is a mix of a novel and memoir, while 'Romany Rye' recounts his time with English Gypsies.

Early Life and Education

George Borrow was born on July 5, 1803, in East Dereham, Norfolk. He was the son of an army officer responsible for recruiting new soldiers and a farmer's daughter. Borrow studied at the Royal High School in Edinburgh and a private school in Norwich. While he initially studied law, his main interests soon shifted to foreign languages and literature.

The Influence of Travel

In 1825, Borrow embarked on his first major journey, visiting France and Germany. Over the next few years, he traveled to Russia, Portugal, Spain, and Morocco, immersing himself in the traditions, way of life, and languages of these countries. Borrow's childhood was marked by frequent moves due to his father's military career. In autumn 1815, he found himself in Clonmel, a small town in Ireland, where he attended a Protestant school. There, he learned to read Greek and Latin from an "old glorious priest" and became acquainted with the Irish language through one of his classmates, who taught him in exchange for a deck of playing cards. Additionally, Borrow took up horse riding and learned to ride bareback. After spending about a year in Ireland, the regiment returned to Norwich, and when the threat of war subsided, the unit was significantly reduced in size.

The Literary Path

Thanks to his exceptional language skills, George Borrow became a protégé of William Taylor, a prominent Norwich scholar and enthusiast of German romantic literature, whom he later portrayed in his novel 'Lavengro'. With Taylor's approval, Borrow began translating Friedrich von Klinger's novel 'Faustus, his Life, Death and Descent into Hell', renaming the depicted city in the novel to Norwich. This change offended the residents of Norwich, and Borrow faced public humiliation when public libraries were instructed to burn his first publication. In August 1833, Borrow notified the British and Foreign Bible Society that he was familiar with the Russian language. As their representative, he was sent to Russia to oversee the translation of the Bible into Manchu. He spent two years in St. Petersburg, where he fell in love with the city's beauty and translated the poetry of Alexander Pushkin. Although he never met Pushkin in person, both men expressed regret about it. Despite his initial prejudice, Borrow later wrote that he had never known a people kinder and more benevolent than the Russians.

Later Life and Legacy

On April 23, 1840, when his career with the Bible Society came to an end, George Borrow married Mary Clarke, a widow with a grown-up daughter and a small fortune. They settled near Lowestoft in Suffolk, where Borrow began writing books. The family did not hinder the writer from continuing his travels both within and outside of the UK, as he could never stay in one place for long. As a result, they frequently moved homes. In the 1850s, they lived in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, and in the 1860s, in London. Borrow continued to visit Gypsy camps and wrote another book, 'Romano Lavo-Lil', a dictionary of the English Romany dialect. His wife passed away in 1869, and in 1874, Borrow returned to his home in Oulton. Later, his stepdaughter Henrietta and her husband moved in with him and cared for him until the end of his life.

George Borrow passed away on July 26, 1881, and was buried next to his wife in Brompton Cemetery in London.