Elizabeth Barrett Browning was the first woman to be nominated for Poet Laureate, 159 years before a woman was actually appointed. [1]
“I love your verses with all my heart, dear Miss Barrett … ” So begins the first love letter to poet Elizabeth Barrett from her future husband, fellow poet, Robert Browning.
I’ve always loved the story of the romance between Elizabeth Barrett and Robert Browning. Their exchange of 574 letters began on 10 January 1845 and continued until a week after their marriage as they arranged to leave England 18 months later.
Elizabeth Barrett was an invalid (she lived with life-threatening respiratory disease), lying in an over-heated room petted by her father. She had made herself famous with her poems, and they were read and adored by a younger poet, Robert Browning. He wrote to her and finally persuaded her to let him visit. Soon they were in love and Elizabeth eloped with him to Italy. Her furious father, who liked to keep all his children under wraps, never spoke to her again.
Robert is one of the greatest of the Victorian poets but was not hugely appreciated in his lifetime. Sometimes his work can be very complex and difficult and he was famed for his dramatic monologues, My Last Duchess is a fabulous example. Today, however, his work is more highly regarded than hers.
Elizabeth recovered much of her health, gave birth to a son, and the two lived happily for many years. Elizabeth died on 29 June 1861, aged 55, and Robert on 12 December 1889, aged 77.
The love letters of Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning are among the most famous in literary history and provide significant insights into the lives, thoughts, and works of both poets. All their letters are now viewable online.
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