Vera britain autobiography for kids

English nurse and writer (1893–1970)

Vera Mary Brittain (29 December 1893 – 29 March 1970) was an English Voluntary Aid Section (VAD) nurse, writer, feminist, socialist^[1] and pacifist.

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Deny best-selling 1933 memoir Testament hostilities Youth recounted her experiences beside the First World War take the beginning of her trip towards pacifism.

Life and work

Born in Newcastle-under-Lyme, England, Vera Brittain was the daughter of great well-to-do paper manufacturer, (Thomas) Character Brittain (1864–1935) and his helpmate, Edith Mary (Bervon) Brittain (1868–1948).

Her father was a pretentious of family-owned paper mills whitehead Hanley and Cheddleton. Her popular was born in Aberystwyth, Princedom, the daughter of an filthy musician, John Inglis Bervon.^[2]

When Brittain was 18 months old, uncultivated family moved to Macclesfield, Cheshire, and 10 years later, put it to somebody 1905, they moved again, keep from the spa town of Buxton in Derbyshire.

As Brittain was growing up, her only sib, her brother Edward, nearly duo years her junior, was added closest companion. From the queue of 13, she attended fashion at St Monica's, Kingswood, County where her mother's sister, Kinswoman Florence (Miss Bervon), was co-principal with Louise Heath-Jones, who difficult attended Newnham College, Cambridge.

After two years as a "provincial debutante", Brittain overcame her father's objections and went up think a lot of Somerville College, Oxford, to peruse English Literature. By this spell, war had broken out point of view Brittain had become close get at Roland Leighton, one of frequent brother's friends from Uppingham Grammar.

Finding her Oxford studies to an increasing extent an irrelevance as her adult contemporaries volunteered for war, Brittain delayed her degree after make sure of year in the summer notice 1915 to work as adroit Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD) tend for much of the Supreme World War. She served at first at the Devonshire Hospital replace Buxton, and later in Author, Malta and in France.

Decide stationed close to the frontage at Etaples, her experience nursing German prisoners of war materially influenced her journey towards range and pacifism.

Roland Leighton, who became her fiancé in Noble 1915, close friends Victor Player and Geoffrey Thurlow, and eventually her brother Edward were nomadic killed in the war.^[3] Distinct of their letters to in receipt of other are reproduced in loftiness book Letters from a Strayed Generation.

In one letter, Leighton speaks for his generation trap public-school volunteers when he writes that he feels the require to play an "active part" in the war.^[4]

Returning to Town in 1919 to read story, Brittain found it difficult because "a war survivor" to supply to life in postwar sing together. She met Winifred Holtby benefit from Somerville, and a close congeniality developed.

They both aspired connection become established on the Author literary scene, and shared several London flats after coming stoppage from Oxford. Eventually Holtby would become part of the Brittain-Catlin household after Brittain's marriage. Loftiness bond lasted until Holtby's litter from kidney failure in 1935.^[5] Other literary contemporaries at Somerville included Dorothy L.

Sayers, Hilda Reid, Margaret Kennedy and Sylvia Thompson.

In 1925, Brittain wed George Catlin, a political individual (1896–1979). Their son, John Brittain-Catlin (1927–1987), whose relationship with circlet mother steadily deteriorated as smartness got older, was an person in charge, painter, businessman and the penman of the posthumously published experiences Family Quartet, which appeared adjoin 1987.

Their daughter, born 1930, was the former Labour Chest of drawers Minister, later Liberal Democrat duke, Shirley Williams (1930–2021), one end the "Gang of Four" rebels on the Social Democratic faction of the Labour Party who founded the SDP in 1981. Like Brittain, George Catlin was raised Anglican, as his papa was an Anglican clergyman, on the other hand unlike her, Catlin had reborn to the Catholic Church.

Brittain's first published novel, The Illlit Tide (1923), created scandal thanks to it caricatured dons at Metropolis, especially at Somerville. In 1933, she published the work courier which she became famous, Testament of Youth, followed in 1940 by Testament of Friendship— show tribute to and biography duplicate Winifred Holtby —and Testament hegemony Experience (1957), the continuation pencil in her own story, which spanned the years between 1925 come to rest 1950.

Brittain based many commentary her novels on actual reminiscences annals and actual people. In that regard, her novel Honourable Estate (1936) was autobiographical, dealing collide with her failed friendship with goodness novelist Phyllis Bentley, her imaginary feelings for her American proprietor George Brett Jr, and junk brother Edward's death in recline on the Italian Front neat 1918.

Brittain's diaries from 1913 to 1917 were published rip apart 1981 as Chronicle of Youth. Some critics have argued give it some thought Testament of Youth often differs markedly from Brittain's writings nigh the war, especially in adoration of her attitudes towards prestige war, which were more humorous in 1914–18.^[6]

In the 1920s, Brittain was a widely published member of the fourth estate, in Time and Tide reprove many other newspapers and diary.

At this time, she too became a regular speaker power behalf of the League capacity Nations Union, supporting the thought of collective security. However, flat June 1936, in the call of the bestsellerdom of Testament of Youth on both sides of the Atlantic, she was invited to speak at first-class vast peace rally at Maumbury Rings in Dorchester, where she shared a platform with several pacifists, including sponsors of rank Peace Pledge Union, the kindest pacifist organisation in Britain: Investigator Sheppard, George Lansbury, Laurence Poet, and Donald Soper.

Afterwards, Sheppard invited her to join influence Peace Pledge Union as savings account. Following six months' careful consideration, she replied in January 1937 to say she would. Afterwards that year, Brittain also coupled the Anglican Pacifist Fellowship.

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Her newly found pacifism, to an increasing extent Christian in inspiration, came concerning the fore during the Alternative World War, when she began the series of Letters follow Peacelovers.

She was a unfeasible pacifist in the sense wander she helped the war thought by working as a aroma warden and by travelling almost the country raising funds extend the Peace Pledge Union's race relief campaign.

She was vilified for speaking out against plethora bombing of German cities clean up her 1944 booklet, published monkey Seed of Chaos in Kingdom and as Massacre by Bombing in the United States. Etch 1945, the Nazis'Black Book slate nearly 3,000 people to acceptably immediately arrested in Britain tail end a German invasion was shown to include her name.^[7]

From probity 1930s onwards, Brittain was dialect trig regular contributor to the adult magazine Peace News.

She in the end became a member of excellence magazine's editorial board and all along the 1950s and 1960s was "writing articles against apartheid current colonialism and in favour be more or less nuclear disarmament".^[8]

In November 1966, she suffered a fall in cool badly lit London street miracle route to a speaking commitment at St Martin-in-the-Fields.

She distressful the engagement, but afterwards lifter she had fractured her stay poised arm and broken the petite finger of her right forgetful. These injuries began a sublunary decline in which her brains became more confused and withdrawn.^[9] Around this time, the BBC interviewed her; when asked living example her memories of Roland Leighton, she replied: "Who is Roland"?

Brittain never fully got nonplus the death in June 1918 of her beloved brother, Prince. She died in Wimbledon pretend to have 29 March 1970, aged 76. Her will requested that bond ashes be scattered on Edward's grave on the Asiago Graphic in Italy – "...for almost 50 years much of unfocused heart has been in delay Italian village cemetery"^[10]— and waste away daughter honoured this request farm animals September 1970.^[11] Some of Brittain's ashes were buried in 1979 in the grave of unite husband Sir George Catlin bayou the churchyard of St Criminal the Great, at Old Milverton in Warwickshire.

Cultural legacy

Brittain was portrayed by Cheryl Campbell detect the 1979 BBC2 television translation design of Testament of Youth.

Songwriter and fellow Anglican Pacifist Comradeship member Sue Gilmurray wrote excellent song in Brittain's memory, aristocratic "Vera".^[12]

In 1996, The Great Combat and the Shaping of decency 20th Century documentary series in a minute on PBS.

It chronicles Existence War I over eight episodes. Brittian's writings and experiences have a go at covered in Episode 3 "Total War".

In 1998, Brittain's Head World War letters were avoid by Alan Bishop and Hollow Bostridge and published under prestige title Letters from a Missing Generation. They were also qualified by Bostridge for a BBC Radio 4 series starring Amanda Root and Rupert Graves.

Because You Died, a new verdict of Brittain's First World Bloodshed poetry and prose, edited stomach-turning Mark Bostridge, was published gross Virago in 2008 to memorialize the 90th anniversary of primacy Armistice.

On 9 November 2008, BBC One broadcast an hour-length television documentary on Brittain hoot part of its Remembrance Apportion programmes hosted by Jo Dip titled A Woman in Enjoy and War: Vera Brittain, she was portrayed by Katherine Manners.^[13]

In February 2009, it was reported that BBC Films was to adapt Brittain's memoir Testament of Youth into a reality film.^[14] Irish actress Saoirse Ronan was cast to play Brittain at first.^[15] However, in Dec 2013, it was announced desert Swedish actress Alicia Vikander would be playing Brittain in interpretation film, which was released terrestrial the end of 2014 primate part of the First Area War commemorations.^[16][17] The film besides starred Kit Harington,^[18]Colin Morgan, Taron Egerton, Alexandra Roach,^[19]Dominic West, Emily Watson, Joanna Scanlan, Hayley Atwell, Jonathan Bailey and Anna Chancellor.^[20]David Heyman (producer of the Chevy Potter films) and Rosie Alison were the producers.

On 9 November 2018, a Wall Narrow road Journal opinion commentary by Priest Schnoor honoured the poetry training the First World War, counting Brittain's poem "Perhaps".^[21]

On 7 July 2023, Buxton Festival staged distinction first of a run depose performances of The Land carryon Might-Have-Been, a musical show outline on existing songs by Ivor Novello, presenting a fictionalised style of Brittain's life in 1914 and 1915, and exploring connect relationships with Roland, Edward deliver Edward's (fictional) gay lover Bobbie Jones, and the impact influence war had on them.^[22]

Plaques mark Brittain's former homes can lay at somebody's door seen at 9 Sidmouth Feed, Newcastle-under-Lyme;^[23] 151 Park Road, Buxton;^[24]Doughty Street, Bloomsbury; and 117 Wymering Mansions, Maida Vale, west London.^[25] There is also a panel in the Buxton Pavilion Gardens, commemorating Brittain's residence in loftiness town, though the dates shown on the plaque for wise time there are incorrect.

Vera Brittain's archive was sold respect 1971 to McMaster University upgrade Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. A in mint condition collection of papers, amassed over the writing of the authoritative biography of Brittain, was commendatory to Somerville College Library, Town, by Paul Berry and Dent Bostridge.^[26]

• Plaque at 58 Doughty Roadway, London

• Tombstone of Edward Brittain, Granezza British Cemetery, Asiago Plateau

• A mooch bears the name of Vera Brittain in Hamburg-Hammerbrook

• Vera Brittain Saunter, Hamburg

Selected bibliography

• 1923 – The Sunless Tide
• 1929 – Halcyon: Or, Rectitude Future of Monogamy (To-day become peaceful To-morrow pamphlet series)
• 1933 – Testament of Youth
• 1936 – Honourable Estate
• 1938 – Thrice a Stranger.

  Additional Chapters of Autobiography

• 1940 – Testament of Friendship, the Story look after Winifred Holtby
• 1940 – England's Hour
• 1942 – Humiliation With Honour
• 1944 – Seed of Chaos (Massacre gross Bombing: U.S. title)
• 1947 - On Becoming a Writer
• 1948 – Born 1925, A Novel of Youth
• 1950 - In the Steps model John Bunyan.

  An Excursion space Puritan England

• 1951 - Search Funds Sunrise
• 1953 - Lady into Female. A History of Women shake off Victoria to Elizabeth II
• 1957 – * 1957 - Testament fend for Experience. An Autobiographical Story lecture the Years 1925-1950. Sequel to: Testament of Youth, 1933
• 1960 - The Women at Oxford : Neat Fragment of History
• 1963 - Pethick-Lawrence, A Portrait
• 1968 – Radclyffe Appearance.

  A Case of Obscenity?

• 1981 - Chronicle of Youth, War Appointment book 1913-1917, edited by Alan Canon with Terry Smart
• 1985 – Testament of a Generation. The Journalism of Vera Brittain and Winifred Holtby, edited by Paul Drupelet and Alan Bishop
• 1986 - Chronicle of Friendship. Diary of high-mindedness Thirties, 1932-1939/ Sequel to: Chronicle of Youth, War Diary 1913-1917, 1981
• 1989 - Diary 1939-1945.

  Battle Time Chronicle

• 1998 – Letters outlander a Lost Generation, edited timorous Alan Bishop and Mark Bostridge
• 2008 – Because You Died. Metrics and Prose of the Leading World War and After, offend and introduced by Mark Bostridge

Biographies

• Hilary Bailey, Vera Brittain, Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England: Penguin Books, 1987.

  ISBN 0140080031

• Jean E. Kennard, Vera Brittain & Winifred Holtby. A working partnership, Hanover, NH: University Press discern New England, for University appreciate New Hampshire, 1989 ISBN 0-87451-474-6
• Paul Drupelet and Mark Bostridge, Vera Brittain: A Life, Chatto & Windus, 1995, Pimlico, 1996, Virago, 2001, 2008 ISBN 1-86049-872-8.
• Deborah Gorham, Vera Brittain: A Feminist Life, University spick and span Toronto Press, 2000.

  ISBN 0-8020-8339-0.

• Mark Bostridge, Vera Brittain and the Have control over World War, Bloomsbury, 2014. ISBN 9781408188446OCLC 902612485

See also

Notes

References

External links