John Tenniel (1820-1914) was a much-loved illustrator and political cartoonist from the Victorian period. Tenniel was one of the first regular contributing artists for the satirical journal

Punch

, staying with the publication for fifty years. He also illustrated Lewis Carroll’s

Alice inWonderland

(1865) and

Through the Looking Glass

(1872).

Tenniel received little formal training in art. Yet as a child, living in Marylebone, he benefited from his family’s friendship with the painter John Martin. Martin lived five doors to the west of the Tenniels (Morris 18). John Baptist Tenniel, John Tenniel’s father, had a varied career. He was listed as a “professor of drawing” in Pigot’s London Directory of 1832 (Morris 19). He also considered himself an “artist”, “a teacher of

1850 words

Citation: McKenzie Stearns, Precious. "Sir John Tenniel". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 05 August 2021 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=4348, accessed 19 March 2024.]

4348 Sir John Tenniel 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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