Horace Walpole

1717–1797

1 standalone book

Horatio Walpole, 4th Earl of Orford (24 September 1717 – 2 March 1797), also known as Horace Walpole, was an English writer, art historian, man of letters, antiquarian, and Whig politician. He built Strawberry Hill House in Twickenham, south-west London, where he revived the Gothic style decades before it became popular in the Victorian era. His literary reputation is based on the first Gothic novel, The Castle of Otranto (1764), and his extensive Letters, which offer significant social and political insight. These letters have been published in 48 volumes by Yale University Press. He was the son of Sir Robert Walpole, the first British Prime Minister. As he died without children, his barony of Walpole passed to his cousin, who was later created the new Earl of Orford.

Born

1717