Biography elizabeth barrett

A brief introduction to Barrett Browning’s life

Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-61) was one of the most popular poets of the Victorian era, and although her achievement is now eclipsed by that of the man she married in 1846, she was the more popular poet of the two of them during her lifetime and only narrowly lost out to Tennyson for the position of Poet Laureate in 1850.

Here we offer a very short biography of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, taking in her secret elopement, her Victorian verse epic, and other highlights from her interesting life and work.

Elizabeth Barrett was born in County Durham, England in 1806 and spent much of her childhood in Herefordshire, and although she received no formal education, she read widely at home and was well-versed in the classics.

She was plagued by health problems and spent much of her life inside the family home, with her father unwilling to let her see many people. She would, however, begin a celebrated correspondence with the young poet