How Charles Dickens’ Last Wishes Were Ignored
Charles Dickens, born in 1812, is considered one of the greatest English novelists of the Victorian era. Dickens wrote such classics such as “Great Expectations,” “A Tale of Two Cities,” “David Copperfield,” and “A Christmas Carol.” His life of writing literature started in the 1830s, submitting essays and stories to various newspapers and magazines. Later on, he published novels, completing 14 of them. The ending of his last novel, “The Mystery of Edwin Drood,” remains a mystery, as he died before its completion, according to Dickens Fellowship.
On June 9, 1865, Dickens was in a brutal railway accident that left 10 people dead and 40 injured. At that time, he was working on his novel “Our Mutual Friend,” and he wrote about the accident in the novel’s postscript, saying, “I remember with devout thankfulness that I can never be much nearer parting company with my readers for ever, that I was then,” (via Charles Dickens Info.) Five years to the day after the accident — on June 9, 1870 — the author died at the age of 58 after suffering a stroke the day before. Leon Litvak, Associate Professor of Queen’s University Belfast and principal editor of the Charles Dickens Letters Project, wrote (posted at The Conversation) that Dickens was so prominent in English society that Queen Victoria herself sent condolences to Dickens’ widow, Catherine.
Charles Dickens' last will and testament
In Dickens’ last will and testament, he left specific instructions on how to allocate his wealth and where and how he wanted to be buried. For his burial, he wanted something “inexpensive, unostentatious.” He also wanted privacy, saying that the place and time of his burial shouldn’t be announced to the public. Additionally, he requested that those who attend his funeral “wear no scarf, cloak, black bow, long hatband, or other such revolting absurdity,” according to a copy of his last will posted on Trove. Last, he wanted his name to be written in “plain English letters” on his tomb, foregoing the titles “Mr.” or “Esquire.”
At the time of his death, Dickens was beloved by many, but he was known to keep his personal life private. That may be the reason why he wanted a small funeral. His instructions, however, were not followed. According to The Conversation, John Forster, Dickens’ close friend and author of his authorized biography, had a hand in his burial. Forster claimed that upon hearing of Dickens’ death, the media responded by saying that Charles Dickens deserved to be laid to rest at Westminster Abbey’s Poets’ Corner, where other distinguished individuals were buried. Arthur Stanley, the dean of Westminster, then went to Dickens’ family and Forster to plan the burial.
Exploiting a death for personal gain
Charles Dickens was buried on June 14, 1870, in a private affair attended by 14 people. Afterward, his grave was left open for three days in order for the public to visit and mourn.
It was later revealed that the act of ignoring Charles Dickens’ last will and testament regarding his funeral was done for the personal gain of John Forster and Arthur Stanley. As The Conversation reported, Dickens’ close friend thought that Charles being buried at the Poets’ Corner meant plenty of visitors, which would spread his reputation. For Stanley, on the other hand, being in charge of Dickens’ funeral would add another famous person to the list of burials he managed. In the end, the act of not following Dickens’ last will improved the reputations of both Stanley and Forster.
According to Westminster Abbey, Charles Dickens’ grave has a simple inscription — his name, together with his date of birth and date of death. He is buried at the Poets’ Corner alongside other notable figures, including composer George Frederick Handel, fellow novelists Rudyard Kipling and Thomas Hardy, and dramatist Richard Cumberland.
223 thoughts on “How Charles Dickens’ Last Wishes Were Ignored”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
The Truth About The Asteroid Named After Freddie Mercury
Japanese Weapons That Could Have Completely Changed World War II
This Is How George Clinton Lost A Ton Of Money
Here's What Would Happen If Britain Got Rid Of Their Monarchy
This Theory Connects Atlantis And The Black Sea Flood
How Hard Is It For A Star To Escape A Galaxy?
Inside The Soviet Union's Failed Flying Tanks
The Real Reason The KGB Fell Apart
Here's How Shakespeare's Globe Theatre Was Destroyed
The Tragic Death Of Oscar Wilde
Thanks for finally talking about > How Charles Dickens’ Last
Wishes Were Ignored – Pictellme удалить тату минск
It’s great that you are getting ideas from this post as well as from our argument made here.
Good way of explaining, and good post to take data about my presentation subject matter, which i am going to convey in college.
Thanks for finally writing about > %blog_title% < Liked it!
Wow that was odd. I just wrote an very long comment but after I clicked submit my comment didn’t show up. Grrrr… well I’m not writing all that over again. Anyways, just wanted to say fantastic blog!
Heya i’m for the first time here. I came across this board and I find It truly useful & it helped me out a lot. I hope to give something back and help others like you helped me.
This design is steller! You most certainly know how to keep a reader entertained. Between your wit and your videos, I was almost moved to start my own blog (well, almost…HaHa!) Wonderful job. I really enjoyed what you had to say, and more than that, how you presented it. Too cool!
Hey there! Quick question that’s entirely off topic. Do you know how to make your site mobile friendly? My website looks weird when viewing from my iphone. I’m trying to find a theme or plugin that might be able to correct this problem. If you have any suggestions, please share. Cheers!
I am sure this post has touched all the internet viewers, its really really good post on building up new weblog.
Hello there! Would you mind if I share your blog with my twitter group? There’s a lot of people that I think would really enjoy your content. Please let me know. Thank you
Way cool! Some very valid points! I appreciate you writing this article and also the rest of the site is extremely good.
Hi there it’s me, I am also visiting this website daily, this web site is in fact good and the viewers are truly sharing good thoughts.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on %meta_keyword%. Regards
After looking over a few of the blog posts on your website, I honestly like your way of blogging. I book-marked it to my bookmark website list and will be checking back soon. Please check out my web site as well and let me know how you feel.