James Sheridan Knowles | |
|---|---|
 James Sheridan Knowles by Wilhelm Trautschold | |
| Born | 12 May 1784 Cork,County Cork,Kingdom of Ireland |
| Died | 30 November 1862 Torquay,Devon,United Kingdom |
| Occupation | Dramatist and actor |
| Spouse | Maria Charteris |
James Sheridan Knowles (12 May 1784 – 30 November 1862) was an Irishdramatist andactor. A relative ofRichard Brinsley Sheridan, Knowles enjoyed success writing plays for the leadingWest End theatres. Later in his career he also produced several novels.
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Knowles was born inCork. His father was the lexicographerJames Knowles, cousin ofRichard Brinsley Sheridan. The family moved to London in 1793, and at the age of fourteen Knowles published a ballad entitledThe Welsh Harper, which, set to music, was very popular. His talents secured him the friendship ofWilliam Hazlitt, who introduced him toCharles Lamb andSamuel Taylor Coleridge. He served for some time in theWiltshire and afterwards in theTower Hamlets militia, leaving the service to become a pupil of Dr Robert Willan (1757–1812). He obtained the degree of M.D., and was appointed vaccinator to theJennerian Society.[1]
Although Dr Willan offered him a share in his practice, Knowles decided to give up medicine for the stage, making his first appearance as an actor probably at Bath, and played Hamlet atCrow Street Theatre, Dublin. AtWexford he married, in October 1809, Maria Charteris, an actress from the Edinburgh Theatre. In 1810 he wroteLeo, a successful play in whichEdmund Kean appeared; another play,Brian Boroihme, written for the Belfast Theatre in the next year, attracted crowds; nevertheless, Knowles's earnings were so small that he was obliged to become assistant to his father at theBelfast Academical Institution. In 1817 he moved fromBelfast toGlasgow, where, besides keeping a flourishing school, he continued to write for the stage.[1]
His first important success wasCaius Gracchus, produced at theBelfast Theatre in 1815; and hisVirginius, written forWilliam Charles Macready, was first performed in 1820 at Covent Garden.[2] InWilliam Tell (1825), Knowles wrote for Macready one of his favourite parts. His best-known play,The Hunchback, was produced atCovent Garden in 1832, and Knowles won praise acting in the work as Master Walter.[3]The Wife was brought out at the same theatre in 1833;The Daughter better known asThe Wrecker's Daughter, in 1836, andThe Love Chase in 1837.[1] His 1839 playLove was praised byMary Shelley for its "inspiring situations founded on sentiment and passion".[4] His second wife was the actressEmma Knowles.
In his later years he forsook the stage for the pulpit, and as a Baptist preacher attracted large audiences atExeter Hall and elsewhere. He published two polemical works: theRock of Rome and theIdol Demolished by Its Own Priests in both of which he combated the special doctrines of theRoman Catholic Church. Knowles was for some years in the receipt of an annual pension of £200, bestowed bySir Robert Peel[1] in 1849.[5] In old age he befriended the youngEdmund Gosse, whom he introduced to Shakespeare. Knowles makes a happy appearance in Gosse'sFather and Son.[6]
He died atTorquay on 30 November 1862. He is buried under a huge tomb at the summit of theGlasgow Necropolis.
A full list of the works of Knowles and of the various notices of him will be found inThe Life of James Sheridan Knowles (1872), privately printed by his son,Richard Brinsley Knowles (1820–1882), who was well known as a journalist.[1] It was translated into German.[7]
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Knowles, James Sheridan".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 15 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 877.
