Francesca Maria Steele
Born
Fanny Maria Steele

(1848-04-21)21 April 1848
Dalston, Hackney, London, England
Died16 August 1931(1931-08-16) (aged 83)
Stroud, Gloucestershire, England
NationalityEnglish
Other namesDarley Dale
Occupation(s)Novelist and biographer
Years active1878–1925
Known forBiographies of saints
Notable workThe convents of Great Britain and Ireland

Francesca Maria Steele (21 April 1848 – 10 August 1931) was an English novelist, historian, and biographer, who began writing to support her family. She began her writing career with juvenile fiction; she later moved into adult fiction, using the pseudonym Darley Dale for her fiction writing. Intensely religious, she converted to Roman Catholicism in 1887 and later wrote several books on sacred topics.

Early life

Steele was born in London on 21 April 1848.[1][2][3][note 1] Her parents were Robert Peter Steele (1816 – 10 May 1884),[4] the secretary of the Royal Assurance Company and Frances Mary Francis (8 February 1818 – 3 October 1902).[5]

Steele was educated at Bedford College, London,[6] the first higher education college for women in the United Kingdom. Steele lived in Jersey from 1874 to 1884.[7] She began writing in Jersey, with The Jersey Boys in 1878. Her father died on 10 May 1884,[4] and his pension died with him. He had lost everything else in a bank collapse, so Steele's mother was now dependent on what Steele could earn from her writing.[7]

Steele moved to Gloucestershire with her mother and sisters. Steele and her sister Alice Mary (1856 – c. 1935) converted to Roman Catholicism in 1877.[8] Alice went on to become a nun and was the sister in charge at Tyburn Convent at 6 Hyde Park Place, in London at the time of the 1911 census. Alice was still in charge there twenty years later when Steele died.[9]

Steele had already moved to Loretto House at Stroud in Gloucestershire when her mother died there on 3 October 1902.[5] She was still there nearly thirty years later when she died.[6][10] Even after her mother died, Steele was still supporting her youngest sister, Emma Caroline, when she applied to the Royal Literary Fund in 1914.

Name variants

Steele was registered at birth and baptised as Fanny Maria Steele, and she used this name up until the 1891 census. By the 1901 census she was using the name Florence Steel, but soon changed to Francesca Maria Steele. She used this name for the publication of The Convents of Great Britain in 1902. In the 1911 Census, she used that form of her name also, and continued to do so. For her writing, she used the pseudonym Darley Dale for all of her fiction, but used her real name for her writing on religious topics.[11]

Works

Steele's work can be divided into three types:

  • Juvenile fiction. Indicated by juv. in the table below. Steele wrote about 20 books for children.[note 2][6] Children's books were usually illustrated and printed in a single volume.[12]
  • Adult fiction. Indicated by adt. in the table below. Steele wrote over a dozen adult novels. The earlier adult novels were published in as three-volume novels volumes. This was the norm at the time, as such a format had an appeal to circulating libraries.
  • Religious topics. Indicated by rel. in the table below. Steele wrote biographies of saints and of important figures in church history, as well as her survey of convents and monasteries. She contributed 21 articles to the Catholic Encyclopedia.[1]

The sources for the table are:

  • The Jisc Library Hub Discover Database, that collates catalogues from 161 academic and specialist libraries across the UK and Ireland.
  • The list in the Who Was Who article for Steele.[6]
  • The author page for Steele on the At the Circulating Library: A Database of Victorian Fiction, 1837-1901[8]

There seem to be no works by Steele at Project Gutenberg, so the table indicated those cases where online versions of the texts are available.

Books by Steele
NoYearTitleIllustratorTypePublisherPagesNotes
11878The Jersey Boysjuv.RTS, London[note 3]
21879Helen Leslie; or, "A Little Leaven"juv.Frederick Warne & Co, London192 pages, (8º)[note 4]
31880A Tearful Victory. A story for childrenjuv.SPCK, London128 pages, (8º)
41881The black donkey; or, The Guernsey boysjuv.SPCK, Londoncm.16
51882Little Bricksjuv.James Nisbet & Co, London231 pages, (8º)[note 5][13]
61882The Family Failingjuv.Blackie & Son, London221 pages, (8º)[note 6][13][14]
71882Cissy's Troublesjuv.James Nisbet & Co, London233 pages, (8º)[note 7]
81883Spoilt Guyjuv.James Nisbet & Co, Londoncm.18[note 5][13]
91884Seven sons; or, The story of Malcolm and his brothersjuv.James Nisbet & Co, Londoncm.18
101885Fanny's king: and other storiesjuv.Blackie & Son, London64 p., [1] leaf of plates, ill., 15.2 cm.
111885The wild marsh-marigoldsjuv.Londoncm.15
121885The great auk's eggsCharles Whymperjuv.RTS, London158,[2]p., [1] leaf of plates, ill., 18 cm.[note 7]
131886Oughts and Crosses: or, Mr. Holland's conquestjuv.J. Nisbet & Co, London269 pages, (8º)
141886Fair Katherineadt.Hurst & Blackett, London3 volumes, (8º)
151886Swallow-tails and skippersLucy Francisjuv.RTS, London158 p., 1 col. ill., 19 cm.[note 8][13]
161887The glory of the seajuv.RTS, Londoncm.18
171887The Shepherd's Fairy: a pastoralejuv.RTS, London208 pages, (8º)[note 7]
181889Mr. Mygale's Hobby: a story about spidersCharles Whymperjuv.RTS, London192 pages, (8º)[note 8][13]
191890Noah's ark: a tale of the Norfolk BroadsPaul Hardyjuv.Frederick Warne and Co, London280, [8] p., ill., 20 cm.
201892The little doctor: or, The magic of natureAlexander Monrojuv.Wells Gardner, Darton & Co, London209, [7] p., ill., 20 cm.
211892The Village Blacksmithadt.Hutchinson & Co, London3 volumes, (8º)[note 9][15][16][17]
221893Lottie's wooing, by Darley Daleadt.Hutchinson & Co, London3 vols. cm.19[note 9][18][19][20]
231894The Game of Life. A noveladt.Hutchinson & Co, London3 volumes, (8º)
241896Willy's Flower.juv.Blackie & Son, London16 pages, (16º)[note 10]
251896A Modern Comedy of Errorsadt.[note 11]
261897Stella's story: a Venetian talePaul Woodroffejuv.J. S. Virtue and Co, London248 p., 8 ill., 20 cm.[note 9][21]
271897Chloeadt.Bliss, Sands & Co, London352 pages, (8º)[note 9][22]
281898Cupid's Crooked Waysadt.[note 12][23]
291899Justice Meadows: or the Golden Tree of Knowledgeadt.[note 13][24]
301902The convents of Great Britainrel.Sands & Co, Londonxxv, 320 pages, 25 leaves of plates, portraits (black and white), 19 cm[note 5][13]
311902The Daughters of Jobadt.R. A. Everett & Co, London390 pages, (8º)
321902Monasteries and Religious House of Great Britain and Ireland. With an appendix on the religious houses in Americarel.R. & T. Washbourne, Londonxv, 267 pages, (8º)[note 5][13]
331903The House that Jack builtadt.R. A. Everett & Co, London313 pages, (8º)
341903Anchoresses of the Westrel.Sands & Co, Londonxxii, 261 pages, (8º)
351903The Flighty Duchessadt.[note 14]
361904Brother Francis. A noveladt.R. A. Everett & Co, London316 pages, (8º)
371905The Mirror of St. Edmund. Done into modern English.rel.Burns & Oates, Londonx, 80 pages, (16º)[note 5][13]
381907Naomi's transgressionadt.Frederick Warne and Co, Londonvi, 306, [6] p., [6] l. of plates, ill., 20 cm.[note 15]
391908The story of the English Poperel.Macdonald and Evans, London177 p, col. ill, 17 cm.[note 16]
401909St. Bridget of Swedenrel.R. & T. Washbourne, Londonxxviii, 140 p., frontis., 8º.[note 8][13]
411910The story of the Bridgettinesrel.R. & T. Washbourne, London19 cm.
421910The Beautiful Queen, Joanna I. of Naplesrel.Hutchinson & Co, Londonvii, 347 pages, (8º)
431914The life and visions of St. Hildegarderel.Heath Cranton, Londonxiv, 246 p., frontis., 19 cm.
441921The Life of Saint Walburgarel.Heath Cranton, London189 pages, (8º)[note 5][13]
451922Old Mrs. Grahamadt.Hutchinson & Co, London286 p., 8º.
461923The Master of the Houseadt.Heath Cranton, London290 p., C
471925The convents of Great Britain and Irelandrel.London8º.[note 7]
481928The Little Widow, 2nd editionadt.[note 3]

Example of illustration of one of Steele's books

The following four illustrations by AFB were produced for The Family Failing (1883) by Steele (courtesy of The British Library)[14] Typically, at the time, when it came to novels, only juvenile fiction was illustrated, although serial stories were often illustrated, even if they were for adults.

Later life

At the time of the 1911 Census, Steele was living with her sister Emma Caroline at Loretto House in Stroud. Whatever income she had from her writing, it was obviously not enough as she applied for assistance from the Royal Literary Fund in 1914.[7] In her later years, Steele was an invalid. She died on 16 August 1931, leaving a relatively modest estate of less than £400.[10] Her sister Emma Caroline was her executor, and only survived her sister by four years, dying on 9 December 1935.[25]

Notes

  1. ↑ The index of births shows that Steele was born in the second quarter of 1848. However, she was baptised in St Peter's Church, West Hackney on 26 May 1848
  2. ↑ It is not always clear what category Steele's books fit into, and the list in Who Was Who does not indicate the category for all of her books, and it is possible that there are volumes that are not listed here.
  3. 1 2 Title from Who Was Who.
  4. ↑ A book in Warne's Home Circle Library.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 On-line at the Internet Archive.
  6. ↑ Year of publication from Who Was Who. On-line at the Internet Archive and at The British Library.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Year of publication from Who Was Who.
  8. 1 2 3 Year of publication from Who Was Who. On-line at the Internet Archive.
  9. 1 2 3 4 On-line at The British Library.
  10. ↑ Extracted from Fanny's King, and other stories.
  11. ↑ Title from Who Was Who, Serialised in London Society.
  12. ↑ Title from Who Was Who, Ran as a serial in the Glasgow Weekly Herald.
  13. ↑ Title from Who Was Who, ran as a serial in The Englishwoman.
  14. ↑ Title from Who Was Who. No other information found on this title.
  15. ↑ Who Was Who lists this as an adult novel, but the presence of six illustrations may suggest that it is juvenile fiction.
  16. ↑ Part of the publisher's St. Nicholas series.

References

  1. 1 2 The Catholic Encyclopedia and its Makers. The Encyclopedia Press. 1917. p. 165. Retrieved 1 October 2021 – via archive.org.
  2. ↑ Ancestry.com (2010). "London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; Reference Number: p79/pet/001". London, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1917. Provo, Utah: Ancestry.com.
  3. ↑ "Index entry". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  4. 1 2 Jersey Heritage (14 May 1885). "Reference Number: G/C/09/A4/3". Jersey Church of England Parish Registers: 1862-1896. St. Helier: Jersey Heritage.
  5. 1 2 "Wills and Probates 1858-1996: Pages for Steele and Year of Death 1902". Find a Will Service. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  6. 1 2 3 4 A. & C. Black Ltd. (1967). "Steele, Francesca Maria (Fanny)". Who Was Who: Volume III 1929-1940: A Companion to Who's Who Containing the Biographies of Those Who Died Diring the Period 1929-1940. Vol. III (4th ed.). London: Adam and Charles Black. p. 1284.
  7. 1 2 3 Kemp, Sandra; Mitchell, Charlotte; Trotter, David (1997). "Wynne, May". Edwardian Fiction: An Oxford Companion. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 88.
  8. 1 2 "Author: Francesca Maria Steele (1849–1931)". At the Circulating Library: A database of Victorian Fiction 1837-1901. 31 December 2019. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  9. ↑ "Miss F. M. Steele". The Times (11556): 12. 21 August 1931.
  10. 1 2 "Wills and Probates 1858-1996: Pages for Steele and Year of Death 1902". Find a Will Service. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  11. ↑ Room, Adrian (10 January 2014). "Darley Dale". Dictionary of Pseudonyms: 13,000 Assumed Names and Their Origins (5th ed.). Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 129. ISBN 9780786457632. Retrieved 1 October 2021 – via Google Books.
  12. ↑ Incorporated Society of Authors (Great Britain) (1891). The cost of production : being specimens of the pages and type in more common use, with estimates of the cost of composition, printing, paper, binding, etc., for the production of a book. Vol. VI. Children's Books. London: The Incorporated Society of Authors. p. 59.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Search of Metadata for Creator:(Francesca Maria Steele)". Internet Archive. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  14. 1 2 Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) (1883). A Family Failing. London: Blackie and Son. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  15. ↑ Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) (1892). The Village Blacksmith. Vol. One. London: Hutchinson & Co. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  16. ↑ Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) (1892). The Village Blacksmith. Vol. Two. London: Hutchinson & Co. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  17. ↑ Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) (1892). The Village Blacksmith. Vol. Three. London: Hutchinson & Co. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  18. ↑ Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) (1893). Lottie's Wooing. Vol. One. London: Hutchinson & Co. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  19. ↑ Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) (1893). Lottie's Wooing. Vol. Two. London: Hutchinson & Co. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  20. ↑ Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) (1893). Lottie's Wooing. Vol. Three. London: Hutchinson & Co. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  21. ↑ Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) (1887). Stella's Story. A Venetian tale. London: J. S. Virtue & Co. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  22. ↑ Steele, Francesca Maria (as Darley Dale) (1887). Cloe. London: Bliss, Sands & Co. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  23. ↑ "Advert for the Glasgow Weekly Herald". Glasgow Herald. 17 November 1898. p. 9. Retrieved 1 October 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. ↑ "The May Magazines". Western Times (Tuesday 02 May 1899): 7. 2 May 1899.
  25. ↑ "Wills and Probates 1858-1996: Pages for Steele and Year of Death 1936". Find a Will Service. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
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