Barsetshire

Last updated
Barsetshire
' Chronicles of Barsetshire' location
Barsetshire.jpg
1953 map by Maurice Weightman published as endpapers for Thirkell's Jutland Cottage
Created by Anthony Trollope
Genre Novels
In-universe information
Type Fictional county
LocationsBarchester, Silverbridge, Hogglestock
CharactersMr Septimus Harding, Bishop and Mrs Proudie, Dr Thomas Thorne, Archdeacon Theophilus Grantly

Barsetshire is a fictional English county created by Anthony Trollope in the series of novels known as the Chronicles of Barsetshire (1855-1867). The county town and cathedral city is Barchester. Other towns named in the novels include Silverbridge, Hogglestock and Greshamsbury.

Contents

Origins

According to E. A. Freeman, Trollope conceded to him that Barset was in origin Somerset, although Barchester itself was primarily inspired by Winchester. [1] Other West Country counties such as Dorset also contributed, and Gatherum Castle, for example, was imported from elsewhere, but important elements such as Plumstead Episcopi were drawn directly from Somerset life, in this case Huish Episcopi. [2] In sum, Barset was (in Trollope's own words) "a little bit of England which I have myself created". [3]

Political structure

In Doctor Thorne Trollope describes how the county, formerly represented by a single parliamentary constituency, was split into two constituencies, the more rural East Barsetshire, which includes Barchester, and the more commercial West Barsetshire, by the Reform Act 1832. [4] The borough of Silverbridge, according to the Palliser novels, also elects a Member of Parliament.

Interpretation

Adam Gopnik wrote in The New Yorker , "The six Barsetshire novels... are as much a triumph of the sympathetic imagination as Tolkien's books: it is an entirely invented world, which Trollope entered by transposing his broader knowledge of how the world works onto the inner workings of a cathedral town. The beauty of the idea, though, was that it gave him a way to condense into comedy the crisis of his time: in an age of reform, what would happen to the most conservative and settled institution in England when reform arrived for it, too?" [5]

Later fictional usage

The novel Barchester Pilgrimage (1935), and some of the episodes in Let Dons Delight (1939), both by Ronald Knox, refer to Barsetshire and its inhabitants.

Barsetshire was also used as the setting for a series of 29 novels by Angela Thirkell, written from 1930 to 1961. Thirkell's stories blend social satire with romance. [6] Her 1946 novel, Private Enterprise, explored discontent with the bureaucracy of the Attlee government – something echoed by Orville Prescott in his poem-review beginning "In Barchester all is not well". [7] Thirkell's final Barsetshire book, Three Score and Ten, was completed posthumously, and published in 1961. [8]

Barsetshire is also used in some of the Pullein-Thompson sisters books, usually referring to rival teams or as a nearby county.

Barchester and Barset were used as names for the fictional county in which St Trinians School was supposedly located in the original films.

The county is also mentioned in Michael Innes's Appleby and Honeybath where it is suggested that "the shifting of county boundaries has pretty well done away with Barsetshire" (p 27).

Kevin Kwan's novel Rich People Problems names Barsetshire and the village of Barchester as the family home of Lucien Montagu-Scott and his wife, Colette Bing.

In Vote, Vote, Vote for Nigel Barton , Dennis Potter's 1965 teleplay, the title character runs unsuccessfully for election as a Labour candidate in the rural constituency of West Barsetshire.

HMS Barsetshire, an obsolete County class cruiser, is the training ship for officer candidates in John Winton's We Joined The Navy (1959).

Barchester

Barchester is used as a railway station and location for some of the 1942 Ealing Studios film The Black Sheep of Whitehall .

Barchester Cathedral was used as the setting for the ghost story The Stalls of Barchester Cathedral by M. R. James in his 1911 collection More Ghost Stories . It is also the setting for Charlie Lovett's 2017 literary mystery The Lost Book of the Grail; or, A Visitor's Guide to Barchester Cathedral.

William Golding refers to Barchester and its cathedral in passing in his 1967 novel The Pyramid , set in the small fictional market town of Stilbourne.

In J. L. Carr's 1975 novella How Steeple Sinderby Wanderers Won the F.A. Cup , the title team play in the Barchester & District League. During the story, they play Barchester City (known as the Holy Boys) at home in an FA Cup qualifier.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anthony Trollope</span> English novelist of the Victorian period (1815-1882)

Anthony Trollope was an English novelist and civil servant of the Victorian era. Among his best-known works is a series of novels collectively known as the Chronicles of Barsetshire, which revolves around the imaginary county of Barsetshire. He also wrote novels on political, social, and gender issues, and other topical matters.

<i>Barchester Towers</i> 1857 novel by Anthony Trollope

Barchester Towers is a novel by English author Anthony Trollope published by Longmans in 1857. It is the second book in the Chronicles of Barsetshire series, preceded by The Warden and followed by Doctor Thorne. Among other things it satirises the antipathy in the Church of England between High Church and Evangelical adherents. Trollope began writing this book in 1855. He wrote constantly and made himself a writing-desk so he could continue writing while travelling by train. "Pray know that when a man begins writing a book he never gives over", he wrote in a letter during this period. "The evil with which he is beset is as inveterate as drinking – as exciting as gambling".

<i>Framley Parsonage</i> 1861 novel by Anthony Trollope

Framley Parsonage is a novel by English author Anthony Trollope. It was first published in serial form in the Cornhill Magazine in 1860, then in book form in April 1861. It is the fourth book in the Chronicles of Barsetshire series, preceded by Doctor Thorne and followed by The Small House at Allington.

The Chronicles of Barsetshire is a series of six novels by English author Anthony Trollope, published between 1855 and 1867. They are set in the fictional English county of Barsetshire and its cathedral town of Barchester. The novels concern the dealings of the clergy and the gentry, and the political, amatory, and social manoeuvrings among them.

<i>The Last Chronicle of Barset</i> 1867 novel by Anthony Trollope

The Last Chronicle of Barset is a novel by English author Anthony Trollope, published in 1867. It is the sixth and final book in the Chronicles of Barsetshire series, preceded by The Small House at Allington. The novel is set in the fictional county of Barsetshire and deploys characters from the earlier novels, whilst concentrating on the personnel associated with the cathedral. The main narrative thread is catalysed by the loss of a cheque which had been in the possession of the Reverend Josiah Crawley, and the subsequent reactions of his friends and enemies. Trollope drew inspiration from his father and mother in the creation of the Rev. and Mrs. Crawley. In his autobiography, Trollope regarded this novel as "the best novel I have written.", although later commentators do not agree with this judgement. The serialisation was illustrated by G H Thomas who was selected by the publisher, though Trollope had wished for Millais who had illustrated The Small House at Allington.

Borsetshire is a fictional county in the BBC Radio 4 series The Archers. Its county town is the equally fictional Borchester. The county is supposedly set between Worcestershire and Warwickshire, but is also intended as a generic West Midlands rural county. Its name also echoes Anthony Trollope's fictional Barsetshire and the real Dorsetshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frances Milton Trollope</span> English novelist

Frances Milton Trollope, also known as Fanny Trollope, was an English novelist who wrote as Mrs. Trollope or Mrs. Frances Trollope. Her book, Domestic Manners of the Americans (1832), observations from a trip to the United States, is the best known.

<i>The Barchester Chronicles</i> British TV series or programme

The Barchester Chronicles is a 1982 British television serial produced by Jonathan Powell for the BBC. It is an adaptation by Alan Plater of Anthony Trollope's first two Chronicles of Barsetshire, The Warden (1855) and Barchester Towers (1857). The series was directed by David Giles. Location work was videotaped in and around Peterborough Cathedral, using locations such as the Deanery and Laurel Court.

<i>Doctor Thorne</i>

Doctor Thorne is the third novel written by Anthony Trollope in his Chronicles of Barsetshire series, between Barchester Towers and Framley Parsonage. It was published by Chapman and Hall in London in 1858. The idea of the plot was suggested to Trollope by his brother Thomas. Though set in Barsetshire, Barchester and its residents take little part in the proceedings. The novel is mainly concerned with money and position.

<i>The Warden</i> Novel by Anthony Trollope

The Warden is a novel by English author Anthony Trollope published by Longman in 1855. It is the first book in the Chronicles of Barsetshire series, followed by Barchester Towers.

Michael Sadleir, born Michael Thomas Harvey Sadler, was a British publisher, novelist, book collector, and bibliographer.

The Palliser novels are six novels written in series by Anthony Trollope. They were more commonly known as the Parliamentary novels prior to their 1974 television dramatisation by the BBC broadcast as The Pallisers. Marketed as "polite literature" during their initial publication, the novels encompass several literary genres including: family saga, bildungsroman, picaresque, as well as satire and parody of Victorian life, and criticism of the British government's predilection for attracting corrupt and corruptible people to power.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Angela Thirkell</span> British and Australian novelist (1890–1961)

Angela Margaret Thirkell was an English and Australian novelist. She also published one novel, Trooper to Southern Cross, under the pseudonym Leslie Parker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cathedral close</span>

A cathedral close is the area immediately around a cathedral, sometimes extending for a hundred metres or more from the main cathedral building. In Europe in the Middle Ages, and often later, it was usually all the property of the cathedral, and under the bishop or cathedral's legal jurisdiction rather than that of the surrounding city. It normally had gates which were locked at night or when there were disturbances in the wider city, hence the name – "close" in the sense of "something enclosed". It usually included buildings housing diocesan offices, schools, free-standing chapels associated with the cathedral, and the palace of the bishop and other clergy houses associated with the cathedral. Cathedral closes are sometimes – but not necessarily – arranged in a sort of square around a courtyard, as in the close at Salisbury Cathedral. The equivalent German term is Domfreiheit.

<i>Barchester Pilgrimage</i>

Barchester Pilgrimage is a 1935 novel by Ronald Knox, published in London by Sheed and Ward, in which Knox picks up the narrative of the original Chronicles of Barsetshire where Anthony Trollope breaks off. Knox follows the fortunes of the children and grandchildren of Trollope's characters up to the time of writing (1934), with some gentle satire on the social, political and religious changes of the 20th century. The novel was reprinted in 1990 by the Trollope Society.

The American Senator is a novel written in 1875 by Anthony Trollope. Although not one of Trollope's better-known works, it is notable for its depictions of rural English life and for its many detailed fox hunting scenes. In its anti-heroine, Arabella Trefoil, it presents a scathing but ultimately sympathetic portrayal of a woman who has abandoned virtually all scruples in her quest for a husband. Through the eponymous Senator, Trollope offers comments on the irrational aspects of English life.

<i>The Claverings</i>

The Claverings is a novel by Anthony Trollope, written in 1864 and published in 1866–67. It is the story of a young man starting out in life, who must find himself a profession and a wife; and of a young woman who makes a marriage of convenience and must accept the consequences of her decision.

<i>Rachel Ray</i> (novel)

Rachel Ray is an 1863 novel by Anthony Trollope. It recounts the story of a young woman who is forced to give up her fiancé because of baseless suspicions directed toward him by the members of her community, including her sister and the pastors of the two churches attended by her sister and mother.

<i>The Vicar of Bullhampton</i> 1870 novel by Anthony Trollope

The Vicar of Bullhampton is an 1870 novel by Anthony Trollope. It is made up of three intertwining subplots: the courtship of a young woman by two suitors; a feud between the titular Broad church vicar and a Low church nobleman, abetted by a Methodist minister; and the vicar's attempt to rehabilitate a young woman who has gone astray.

References

  1. Sadleir, Michael (1945). Trollope: A Commentary. Constable & Co. p. 159. ISBN   978-0192810090.
  2. Sadleir, Michael (1945). Trollope: A Commentary. Constable & Co. pp. 159–164. ISBN   978-0192810090.
  3. Sadleir, Michael (1945). Trollope: A Commentary. Constable & Co. p. 417. ISBN   978-0192810090.
  4. A. Trollope, Doctor Thorne (London, 1947) p. 2
  5. Gopnik, Adam (May 4, 2015). "Trollope Trending". The New Yorker . 91 (11). ProQuest   1680967745.
  6. Klinkenborg, Verlyn (January 4, 2008). "Life, love and the pleasures of literature in Barsetshire". The New York Times . ProQuest   2222784880.
  7. J. Bew, Citizen Clemm (London 2016) p. 449-51
  8. Pippett, Aileen (May 20, 1962). "Back to Barsetshire". The New York Times . ProQuest   116038318.