Leslie Stephen, Dictionary of National Biography

Gillian Fenwick (University of Toronto)
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The first series of the

Dictionary of National Biography

was published in 63 volumes between January 1885 and June 1900. It is a landmark in publishing history and a monument to Victorian enterprise and intellectual life. It remains a valuable reference tool even with the advent of the new

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography

, a project that stands parallel to rather than in the place of the

DNB

. Leslie Stephen was the first editor. Despite his other, highly notable work, it is the

DNB

for which he is most often remembered, yet the immediate success of the project was limited and the work almost killed him. From the outset he had doubts about its scope and his own abilities, and his fears proved, in the short term at least, to be justified. In time, the value of the Dictionary was…

4664 words

Citation: Fenwick, Gillian. "Dictionary of National Biography". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 30 June 2008 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=9021, accessed 19 March 2024.]

9021 Dictionary of National Biography 3 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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