Quick Facts
NAME:Charles Dickens
OCCUPATION:Author
BIRTH DATE:February 07, 1812
DEATH DATE:June 09, 1870
PLACE OF BIRTH: Portsmouth, England, United Kingdom
PLACE OF DEATH: Higham, Kent, United Kingdom
Spouse: Catherine Dickens (m. 1836–1858)
Children: Charles Dickens, Jr, Mary Dickens, Kate Perugini, Edward Dickens, More
Movies: A Christmas Carol, Oliver Twist, Great Expectations, Scrooged,
Best Known For
Charles Dickens was the well-loved and prolific British author of numerous works that are now considered classics.
Charles Dickens biography
Synopsis
British novelist Charles Dickens was born February 7, 1812, in Portsmouth, England. Over the course of his writing career, he wrote the beloved classic novels Oliver Twist, A Christmas Carol, Nicholas Nickleby, David Copperfield, A Tale of Two Cities and Great Expectations. On June 9, 1870, Dickens died of a stroke in Kent, England, leaving his final novel, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, unfinished.
Early Life
Famed British author Charles Dickens was born Charles John Huffam Dickens on February 7, 1812, in Portsmouth, on the southern coast of England. He was the second of eight children. His father, John Dickens, was a naval clerk who dreamed of striking it rich. Charles Dickens’ mother, Elizabeth Barrow, aspired to be a teacher and school director. Despite his parents’ best efforts, the family remained poor. Nevertheless, they were happy in the early days. In 1816, they moved to Chatham, Kent, where young Charles and his siblings were free to roam the countryside and explore the old castle at Rochester.
In 1822, the Dickens family moved to Camden Town, a poor neighborhood in London. By then the family’s financial situation had grown dire, as John Dickens had a dangerous habit of living beyond the family’s means. Eventually, John was sent to prison for debt in 1824, when Charles was just 12 years old.
Following his father’s imprisonment, Charles Dickens was forced to leave