Washington Irving

Washington Irving was an American short story writer, essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat of the early 19th century. He is best known for his short stories "Rip Van Winkle" and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow", both of which appeared in his collection The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.. Often called the "first American man of letters", Irving achieved international fame and was a pivotal figure in the development of American literature, helping to shape its romantic and historical traditions.

Early life and education

He was born in Manhattan at the end of the American Revolutionary War, the youngest of eleven children to Scottish-English immigrant parents. His mother named him after the war hero George Washington, and he was blessed by the future president in New York City in 1789. Irving was a precocious but informal student, preferring to read works by Daniel Defoe and The One Thousand and One Nights over his law books. He briefly studied law in the offices of prominent attorneys and was admitted to the New York bar in 1806, but his passion remained with writing and travel. His early education was supplemented by extensive travels throughout the Hudson Valley and upstate New York, regions that would later feature prominently in his fiction.

Literary career

Irving began his literary career with satirical letters to the New York Morning Chronicle under the pseudonym Jonathan Oldstyle. His first major work, A History of New York (1809), was a comedic satire published under the pen name Diedrich Knickerbocker and lampooned local politics and historical scholarship. Following the death of his fiancée, he traveled to Europe in 1815, where he would remain for 17 years. In England, struggling financially, he wrote the pieces that would become The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. (1819-1820), which included his most famous tales set in the Catskill Mountains and Tarrytown, New York. This collection was a massive success on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. He continued writing while living in Dresden, Paris, and Spain, producing works like Bracebridge Hall, Tales of a Traveller, and the Spanish-influenced The Alhambra. He also authored respected biographies of Christopher Columbus and George Washington.

Diplomatic service

After serving as the aide-de-camp to New York Governor Daniel D. Tompkins during the War of 1812, Irving later entered formal diplomatic service. His literary fame and social connections in Europe led to his appointment as Secretary to the United States Legation in London in 1829. In 1842, after lobbying by influential friends like author Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, President John Tyler appointed him as the Minister to Spain. He served in Madrid during the tumultuous reign of Queen Isabella II and the Espartero regency, providing insightful dispatches on the political chaos before returning to the United States in 1846.

Later life and death

Upon his return from Europe, Irving settled at his estate, Sunnyside, in Tarrytown, New York, overlooking the Hudson River. He continued to write and publish, completing his five-volume biography Life of George Washington shortly before his death. He remained a prominent and beloved public figure, often entertaining visitors and corresponding with other literary giants like Charles Dickens and Nathaniel Hawthorne. In his final years, he served as the first president of the Astor Library, a precursor to the New York Public Library. He died of a heart attack at Sunnyside in 1859 and was buried in the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, New York.

Legacy and influence

Irving is widely regarded as the first American author to achieve significant international acclaim, with admirers including Lord Byron, Sir Walter Scott, and Charles Dickens. He popularized the short story as a distinct literary form in America and helped establish a sense of American cultural identity through his use of local history and folklore. His creation of the fictional historian Diedrich Knickerbocker and his depictions of the Hudson Valley cemented a romantic, historical image of early New Netherland and gave the term "Knickerbocker" to New York culture. His works have been adapted countless times into operas, films, and television, most notably by Walt Disney and director Tim Burton. Institutions like Washington Irving's Sunnyside and numerous schools and landmarks across the United States bear his name.

Category:American short story writers Category:American diplomats Category:1783 births Category:1859 deaths