Anna Seward
(1742-1809), Writer and poetMid-Georgian Portraits Catalogue Entry
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.
by Tilly Kettle
oil on canvas, 1762
NPG 2017
by John Chapman, published by Vernor & Hood
stipple engraving, published 1 March 1799
NPG D14659
by Henry Landseer, after John Downman
stipple engraving, early 19th century
NPG D5940
by Anthony Cardon, after Tilly Kettle
stipple engraving, published 1811 (1762)
NPG D5941
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