Poems by Charlotte Turner Smith (1749 - 1806)
- Beachy Head
- Composed during a walk on the Downs, November 1787
- On Leaving a part of Sussex
- On seeing a Seaman return who had been imprisoned at Rochfort
- Sonnet Written at Penshurst in Autumn, 1788
- South Downs
- The Female Exile
- To the River Arun
- To the River Arun
- Written at Penshurst in Autumn 1788
- Written at Weymouth in Winter
- Written in the Church-Yard at Middleton in Sussex
- Written on the Banks of the Arun
Charlotte Smith was born into a well-to-do family in London Unfortunately, her father lived beyond his means and so Charlotte was forced to marry early. Her marriage was unhappy and she wrote her first book of poems while in debtors gaol with her husband. The proceeds from the book secured their release. She lived for a while in Dieppe, northern France and on returning to England she moved frequently, living in Sussex for a while (in Brighton and near Chichester) and in Bath and Oxford amongst other places. Finally she settled at Tilford in Surrey,where she died and is buried. She was an early writer of Gothic novels and a poet who influenced the Romantic movement, especially Wordsworth.
