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Anna Seward

(1742-1809), Writer and poet

Sitter associated with 4 portraits
'The Swan of Lichfield', one of the best-known poets of the 1780s and 1790s. Seward was born in the Derbyshire village of Eyam and lived from the age of ten in Lichfield where her father Thomas was canon. After his death in 1790 she continued to live in the Bishop's Palace and wrote romantic poetry. Her elegies on Captain Cook and David Garrick brought her to public notice and she became friendly with many leading members of intellectual society. She bequeathed all her poems to Sir Walter Scott who published them as Poetical Works in 1810. Six volumes of her letters appeared the following year.

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Anna Seward

by Tilly Kettle
oil on canvas, 1762
NPG 2017

Anna Seward

by John Chapman, published by Vernor & Hood
stipple engraving, published 1 March 1799
NPG D14659

possibly Anna Seward

by Henry Landseer, after John Downman
stipple engraving, early 19th century
NPG D5940

Anna Seward

by Anthony Cardon, after Tilly Kettle
stipple engraving, published 1811 (1762)
NPG D5941

Related People

Thomas Seward (father)

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Anna Seward