These annotated letters present the first personal glimpse of this Scottish playwright as she wrote and lived. It documents her problems with publishers, describes her encounters with Wordsworth, Byron, Southey, Berry and other literary figures, outlines a long relationship with Scott and places an active literary woman in the historical and social setting of early to mid-nineteenth century Britain.

The earliest letter dates from 1800, not long after Baillie had announced her authorship of the first volume of Plays on the Passions. The last dates only a few weeks before her death in 1851. --

Drawing on previously unpublished archival materials, this study spans three generations of the Lushington family. It investigates their personal histories through the themes of social, artistic, and cultural history. The author analyzes the Lushington family’s relationships with well-known figures like Lady Byron, Queen Caroline, and members of the Bloomsbury Group. Most importantly, this study examines Lushington family members’ roles within larger trends, including abolitionism, the Pre-Raphaelite movement, and Positivism.