Who was Dante Gabriel Rossetti?
Painter and Poet.
Date and Place of Birth:
12th May 1828, London, England. Christened Gabriel
Charles Dante Rossetti.
Family Background:
Son of Gabrielle Rossetti and Lavinia Polidori
and brother of Christina Rossetti. Also studies in the studio of
Ford Maddox Brown.
Education:
King’s College. Sass’s Drawing School, Bloomsbury,
London. Royal Academy Schools, London.
Chronology/Biography of Dante Gabriel Rossetti:
1848: Forms the
Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood with William Holman Hunt
and John Everett Millais.
1849: Completes
the painting"Childhood of Mary Virgin." Meets Elizabeth
Siddal for the first time and trains her in the art of painting.
and writing. She becomes his model.
1850: Finalises
work on the painting "Ecce Ancilla Domini". "The
Germ" is published featuring many works by Pre-Raphaelites
and their symapathisers. Rossetti includes his poems "The Blessed
Damozel" and "My Sister's Sleep".
1854: Meets John
Ruskin.
1856: Meets William
Morris, over whom he was to become a great
influence.
1861: Publishes
"The Early Italian Poets" which consisted of translations
from sixty major Italian poets such as Dante himself.
1862: Badly affected
by the death of his wife from an overdose of Laudanum. His work
began to take on a more and more morbid turn.
1869: Began an affair
with Jane Morris, the wife of William Morris.
1871-74: Jane began
to model for him on his stay at Kelmscott Manor.
1872: After a particularly
bad attack of depression he attempted suicide.
1880: Jane posed
for his painting "The Daydream".
1881: Published
his "Ballads and Sonnets" which featured "The King's
Tragedy.
Written Works:
- 1850: “The
Gem.”
- 1861: “Early
Italian Poets”.
- 1870:
“Poems”.
- 1881:
“Ballads and Sonnets”.
- (1886):
“Collected Works”.
Marriage:
1860 to Elizabeth Siddal. (died 1862 from an
overdose of Laudanum)
Places of Interest:
BIRMINGHAM:
Museum and Art Gallery
LONDON:
Victoria and Albert Museum
Date and Place of Death:
9th April 1882,
Birchington-on-Sea, Kent, England.
Age at Death:
54.
Site of Grave:
All Saint's Churchyard, Birchington-on-Sea, Kent,
England.
