George Moore (novelist)

George Augustus Moore (February 24, 1852 - January 21, 1933) was an Irish novelist, short story writer, poet, art critic, memoirist and dramatist. Moore came from a Roman Catholic landed family, originally intended to be an artist, and studied art in Paris during the 1870s. There he befriended many of the leading French artists and writers of the day.

Later life and work

Moore returned to London, where, with the exception of frequent trips to France, he was to spend the rest of his life. In 1913, he travelled to Jerusalem to research background for his novel The Brook Kerith (1916). This book, based on the supposition that a non-divine Christ did not die on the cross but was nursed back to health and eventually travelled to India to learn wisdom, saw Moore once again embroiled in controversy. Other books from this period include a further collection of short-stories called A Storyteller's Holiday (1918), a collection of essays called Conversations in Ebury Street (1924) and a play, The Making of an Immortal (1927). He also spent considerable time revising and preparing his earlier writings for a uniform edition.

Related Topics:
France - 1913 - Jerusalem - 1916 - Christ - India - 1918 - 1924 - 1927

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Moore Hall was burnt down by anti-treaty forces during the Irish Civil War in 1923, partly because Maurice Moore was active on the pro-treaty side. Moore eventually received compensation of £7,000 from the government of the Irish Free State. By this time George and Maurice had become estranged, mainly because of the unflattering portrait of the latter in Hail and Farewell and because of Maurice's active support of the Roman Catholic Church, frequently from estate funds. Moore later sold a large part of the estate to the Irish Land Commission for £25,000.

Related Topics:
Treaty - Irish Civil War - 1923 - Irish Free State - Roman Catholic Church - Irish Land Commission

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He was friendly with many members of the expatriate artistic communities of London and Paris and conducted a long-lasting affair with Lady Maud Cunard. It is now believed that he was the natural father of her daughter, the well-known publisher and art patron, Nancy Cunard. Gertrude Stein mentions Moore in her The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas (1933), describing him as 'a very prosperous Mellon's Food baby'.

Related Topics:
Maud Cunard - Nancy Cunard - Gertrude Stein - 1933

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Moore's last novel, Aphroditis in Aulis, was published in 1930. He contracted uraemia and died at his home at Ebury Street in the London district of Pimlico. When he died, he left a fortune of £80,000, none of which was left to his brother. He was cremated in London and an urn containing his ashes was interred on Castle Island in Lough Carra in view of the ruins of Moore Hall. The grounds of the hall are now a Coillte-managed forest park. As of 2004, a plan for the restoration of the house is being considered by the Irish government.

Related Topics:
1930 - Uraemia - Pimlico - Coillte - 2004 - Irish government

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