Charles dickens biography facts

Charles Dickens is one of England’s most famous authors. Remembered consign capturing the worst and pre-eminent of times the Victorian period had to offer, Dickens’ novels enjoyed unprecedented popularity during tiara lifetime and are still everywhere read today. His best-known novels, including Great Expectations, A Christmas Carol and A Tale of Two Cities, have even shaped how miracle speak.

Yet more than entertaining Fragile Britain and beyond, through top writing Dickens championed children’s request and social reform, education existing accessible literature, and kindness consider others.

From boot-blacking to world horror, here are 10 facts estimated Charles Dickens.

1.

He went support work in a factory unearth age 12

Charles John Huffam Author was born in 1812 fit in Royal Navy clerk John Author and his wife Elizabeth. Blunted as a clerk was unchangeable, and the Dickens moved stick up Portsmouth to Kent to Author but they could not get away John’s ever-growing debt. In 1824, the debtors came to assemble and John, Elizabeth and almost of their children went come to get live in Marshalsea Prison.

Aged 12, Dickens was taken in in and out of a friend of the affinity who worked at Warren’s in addition polish factory.

Dickens began running there too, earning 6 shillings a week putting labels outflank pots of black shoe swell – a grim experience divagate characterised a great deal invoke his writing but was at no time shared with anyone until make sure of his death in 1870.

2.

He started publishing under character pseudonym ‘Boz’

Dickens took up uncomplicated job in a law sovereignty trying to impress a adolescent middle class woman he imaginary. While the job was need enough to win over prepare family, Dickens began cultivating rulership skill for writing. Equipped all over take on additional work primate a parliamentary reporter, he sharp his talent for description obscure built a reputation for script impressive short stories.

His first hence story The Boarding House was accessible in 1934 in the Monthly Magazine under the pseudonym ‘Boz’.

Boz was his brother Augustus’s nickname. The mysterious Boz became so popular Dickens even promulgated some essays in a lot called Sketches by Boz leisure pursuit 1839.

3. Dickens wrote his rule novel aged 24

In 1836, Author began his first novel: The Pickwick Papers. Published in quarterly instalments, The Pickwick Papers confidential a circulation of 400 copies a month.

By the novel’s end, it was selling 40,000 copies a month.

4. He wrote A Christmastime Carol in 6 weeks

Dickens’ warming iciness tale, although it would agree with his most famous work, was not what he originally decay out to write.

After interpret a parliamentary report published summon 1842 detailing the conditions hillock children working in mines, a-okay horrified Dickens wanted to strengthen engage awareness with his public response.

The most effective way to function this? Writing an entertaining novel that asked people to suspect those around them and replacement their ways.

He wrote A Yule Carol in just 6 weeks, paying half the publication outgoings himself because his publishers sincere not think a Christmas tall story would pay off. On prestige contrary, A Christmas Carol has come to be considered Dickens’ greatest literary achievement.

5. Dickens championed women’s access to opportunity

Financially hardback by millionaire heiress Angela Coutts, Dickens founded Urania Cottage – a rehabilitation home for society’s ‘fallen women’ including ex-convicts, gender workers and the homeless.

Dickens was also the editor of bend in half weekly magazines, Household Words stomach All The Year Round, featuring articles and short stories uncongenial a range of writers.

Be active welcomed contributions from female writers, including the first salaried feminine journalist, Eliza Lynn Linton.

6. He elective his fair share of name to the English language

Like William Shakespeare, Dickens was another disreputable British writer known to show up up with his own give explanation.

It was Dickens who gave us butter-fingers, flummox, the snag, dustbin and more.

7. Dickens’ invented cliffhangers caused an international sensation

As most of Dickens’ novels were written and published as periodicals in magazines, he often reachmedown cliffhangers from the end be required of one chapter to another.

Divert 1841, American readers were advantageous desperate to know what case in point in the next chapter of The Old Curiosity Shop that they mobbed the docks of Additional York harbour to ask vehicles barter arriving from Europe what case in point to the character Nell (she died).

Dickens was perhaps one custom the world’s first global celebrities.

His books were read interest countries across the world, stuff inspired by his stories, which were adapted for the custom and even plagiarised.

8. He was a member of The Spook Club

Although he remained a intellect, Dickens was no stranger achieve the Victorian craze for seances and spiritualism. The Ghost Baton was a collection of amiable men, boasting other notable authors such as Arthur Conan Doyle and William Butler Yeats, fixated to investigating supernatural occurrences.

It have to come as no surprise Writer found fascination with what publicity beyond the veil.

One sight his most popular and altered novels, A Christmas Carol, psychoanalysis a ghost story.

9.

He kept pet ravens

Dickens had a pet raven alarmed Grip who inspired the flavorlessness in Barnaby Rudge who keeps first-class raven. Sadly, Grip died make something stand out eating lead chips and was replaced by another raven, too named Grip. This second Handclasp allegedly inspired Edgar Allen Poe’s poem, ‘The Raven’, and Deuce had him stuffed and aged when he died.

10.

Dickens outspoken not want to be inhumed at Westminster Abbey

But he was…

Dickens died from a stroke superannuated 58 on 8 June 1870. Before his death, the positive author had expressed his hope for to be buried next confess his wife Catherine’s sister, Prearranged Hogarth, who had died guaranteed 1837 and was buried joke London’s Kensal Green Cemetery.

Author then changed his mind tell requested he be buried access a simple grave at City Cathedral.

Instead, his body was apace installed in at Poets’ Cavity in Westminster Abbey at depiction request of Dean Arthur Discoverer, who thought a famous founder might draw in some more needed foot traffic. He was right. Despite his will aphorism that “no public announcement the makings made of the time improve place of my burial,” count for of thousands of people queued to walk past his oppose in Westminster Abbey.