Kitty Lee Jenner
Kitty Lee Jenner | |
---|---|
Morvoren | |
Born | Katharine Lee Rawlings 9 December 1853 Hayle, Cornwall |
Died | 21 October 1936 Hayle, Cornwall | (aged 83)
Resting place | Lelant |
Other names | Katharine Jenner, Katharine Lee |
Occupation(s) | Artist, author, bard |
Spouse | Henry Jenner |
Children | 1 |
Kitty Lee Jenner (12 September 1853 – 21 October 1936) was a Cornish
As well as pursuing her writing career, Jenner worked together with her husband on themes such as
Early life
Katharine Lee Rawlings was born at
Rawlings married Henry Jenner on 12 July 1877 and became known as Kitty Jenner or Mrs Henry Jenner. Her husband had corresponded with her since 1873, when he interviewed her father about the Cornish language, a topic which later became a major research interest for the couple. They honeymooned in Europe and on 21 June 1878 Jenner gave birth to their only child, Cecily Katharine Ysolt Jenner.[5]
Career
Jenner published her first novel in 1882. It was entitled A Western Wildflower and she used the pseudonym Katharine Lee. She was to publish five more novels, the last being When Fortune Frowns: Being the Life and Adventures of Gilbert Coswarth, a Gentleman of Cornwall; How he Fought for Prince Charles in the years 1745 and 1746, and What Befell Him Thereafter (1895). Until her husband's fame grew in his old age, her writing career made her the better known of the two.[5][6] It was published by Horace Cox at the price of 6 shillings.[7] Jenner retold the story of the Jacobite rising of 1745 and the Battle of Culloden, The Times review commenting "she acquits herself with credit".[6]
Jenner and her husband were keen Jacobites, joining the
In 1904, Jenner had become a
In the 1900s, Jenner published three non-fiction works on the use of symbols in Christianity.[5] Referring to her Christian Symbolism (1910), D. H. Lawrence wrote "It is necessary to grasp the Whole. At last I have got it".[9] After reading the book, he began to use the phoenix as his emblem.[10] Jenner had explained the phoenix's symbolic meaning in her book as the "resurrection of the dead and its triumph over death", commenting that "the Phoenix in itself was a recognised emblem of the resurrection of Christ".[11]
Jenner wrote and illustrated In the Alsatian Mountains: A Narrative of a Tour in the Vosges (With a Map) (1883) which gave an account of a European tour made in 1882 and was dedicated to her daughter Ysolt.[12] She released a book of poetry entitled Songs of the Stars and the Sea in 1926.[5]
Gallery of works
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Title page of In the Alsatian Mountains (1883)
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Illustration of Nieder Haslach Church from In the Alsatian Mountains (1883)
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Cover of When Fortune Frowns (1897 edition)
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Illustration by Jenner for her book In London Town: A novel (Volume 3) (1884)[13]
Death
Jenner died at home from myocarditis on 21 October 1936. She left around £23,000 in her will (equivalent to £1,700,000 in 2021). She is buried together with her husband at Lelant in west Cornwall.[5]
References
- ISBN 1872229336.
- ISBN 978-0710079282.
- ISBN 978-0850253719.
- ^ "Bardic Roll" (PDF). Gorsedh Kernow. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/75066. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- ^ Gale CS219339978.
- Gale CS135322741.
- ^ "Gorsedh Kernow – the Celtic Spirit of Cornwall". gorsedhkernow.org.uk. Archived from the original on 19 May 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ISBN 978-0-8153-1956-6. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ISBN 978-0-226-19549-0. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ISBN 978-1-349-06510-3. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ^ Lee, Katharine. "In the Alsatian Mountains: A narrative of a tour in the Vosges. [With a map.]". The British Library. Richard Bentley & Son. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ^ Lee, Katharine (1884). In London Town. A novel. London: R. Bentley. p. 197.
Further reading
- Williams, Derek R., ed. (2004). Henry and Katharine Jenner: A celebration of Cornwall's culture, language and identity. Francis Boutle. ISBN 9781903427194.