Mary De Morgan (1850–1907)

Mary De Morgan was the youngest daughter of Augustus De Morgan, the British mathematician. After her father's death, she lived for several years in her brother William's house until his marriage in 1887, after which she lived on her own, making a living as a typist. She captivated her nephews and nieces, as well as the children of friends and family, with her fairy stories. Among them were the children of William Morris' Rudyard Kipling and his sister; their cousins, the Burne-Joneses; and Angela Thirkell, née Mackail. Mary began to write down her stories and published them in three volumes: On A Pincushion (1877); The Necklace of Princess Fiorimonde (1880); and The Windfairies (1900). The three volumes appeared together in the collection The Necklace of Princess Fiorimonde – The Complete Fairy Stories of Mary de Morgan, published in 1963. According to the Greenwood Encyclopedia of Folk Tales and Fairy Tales, her stories played a comprehensive and central role in the evolution of the literary fairytale. Mary's brother William became an artist and writer, and illustrated her first book. She was an active suffragist and a member of the Women's Franchise League. Mary De Morgan moved to Egypt, needing a warmer climate for her health, and died there in 1907.