Mary Shelley

Birth Name:

Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

Birth Date:

August 30, 1797

Birth Place:

The Polygon, Clarendon Square, Somers Town, London, England

Death Date:

February 1, 1851

Place of Death:

24 Chester Square, Belgravia, London, England

Age:

Cause of Death:

Brain tumor

Cemetery Name:

St Peter's Church

Claim to Fame:

Writers and Poets

Mary Shelley (1797–1851) was an English novelist, best known for writing Frankenstein, one of the most influential works in the horror genre. She was born Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, the daughter of the feminist writer Mary Wollstonecraft and philosopher William Godwin. Her mother died only 11 days after her birth, leaving her with a strong intellectual legacy and a challenging childhood. In 1814, at the age of 16, Mary began a romantic relationship with the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, who was already married. Despite societal taboos, they eloped to France in 1816, where they faced personal hardships, including the death of their first child. That same year, during a summer spent with Lord Byron at Lake Geneva, she conceived the idea for Frankenstein, which was published in 1818 when she was just 20. Percy Shelley died in 1822 in a drowning accident, leaving Mary a widow with a young son. She continued to write and publish, but struggled financially and emotionally. She wrote novels, short stories, travelogues, and biographies, though none gained the lasting fame of Frankenstein. She also edited and promoted Percy’s works. Mary Shelley died on February 1, 1851, from a brain tumor at the age of 53. She left behind a legacy as a pioneering figure in Gothic literature and a trailblazer for women in literature, particularly through her groundbreaking work with Frankenstein, which explored themes of creation, responsibility, and the human condition.

Fun Facts

On the first anniversary of Mary Shelley’s death, the Shelleys opened her box-desk. Inside they found locks of her dead children’s hair, a notebook she had shared with Percy Bysshe Shelley, and a copy of his poem Adonaïs with one page folded round a silk parcel containing some of his ashes and the remains of his heart.

Percy Shelley hadn’t achieved much fame during his life but Mary made it her personal mission to keep her husband’s legacy alive. She edited volumes of his work for publication and it was through her determination that Percy Bysshe Shelley become one of the most celebrated of the romantic era poets.

When Mary Shelley’s son, Percy Florence, died in 1889, he was buried with the ashes of his father’s heart.

Cemetery Information:

Final Resting Place:

St Peter's Church

Hinton Road

Bournemouth BH1 2EE, London,

United Kingdom

Europe

Grave Location:

The Shelley-Wollstonecraft Family Tomb, Plot 615

Grave Location Description

As you make your way around to the back of St. Peter’s Church, standing at the doorway off St. Peter’s Path look slightly to the left and then take the stairs up and look to your right for the family tomb of Mary Shelley.