Life and career Ouida

caricature of ouida (punch, 20 august 1881)

she moved langham hotel, london in 1867. there, according hotel promotional materials, wrote in bed, candlelight, curtains drawn , surrounded purple flowers. ran huge hotel , florists bills, , commanded soirees included soldiers, politicians, literary lights (including oscar wilde, algernon swinburne, robert browning , wilkie collins), , artists (including john millais). many of stories , characters based upon people invited salons @ langham. ouida described william allingham in diary of 1872 of short stature, sinister, clever face , voice carving knife.

for many years ouida lived in london, 1871 moved italy. in 1874, settled permanently mother in florence, , there long pursued work novelist. @ first rented apartment @ palazzo vagnonville. later removed villa farinola @ scandicci, south of bellosguardo, 3 miles florence, lived in great style, entertained largely, collected objets d art, dressed expensively not tastefully, drove horses, , kept many dogs, attached. lived in bagni di lucca period, there commemorative plaque on outside wall. declared never received publishers more £1600. 1 novel, found america mine of wealth. in massarenes (1897) gave lurid picture of parvenu millionaire in smart london society. book prized ouida, , successful in terms of sales. thenceforth chiefly wrote leading magazines essays on social questions or literary criticisms, not remunerative. before, used locations inspiration setting , characters in novels. british , american colony in florence satirised in novel, friendship (1878). ouida considered herself serious artist. inspired byron in particular, , interested in other artists of kinds. sympathetic descriptions of tragic painters , singers occurred in later novels. work combines romanticism social criticism. in novel, puck, talking dog narrates views on society. views , opinions includes essays in own voice on variety of social topics. animal lover , rescuer, , @ times owned many thirty dogs.

tomb of ouida in bagni di lucca s english cemetery

although successful, did not manage money well. civil list pension of £150 year offered prime minister, sir henry campbell-bannerman, on application of alfred austin, george wyndham, , walburga, lady paget, reluctantly accepted after request friend, lady howard of glossop, on 16 july 1906.

she continued live in italy until death on 25 january 1908, @ 70 via zanardelli, viareggio, of pneumonia buried in english cemetery in bagni di lucca, italy.