Primarily self-educated and tutored by her father, the Reverend Samuel Charlesworth, Florence married the Reverend Charles Barclay when she was 18. On their honeymoon to the Holy Land, she and her husband discovered the mouth of Jacobs' Well, where Christ is said to have rested. Florence had eight children and did not begin her literary career until she was in her late thirties. Suffering from a number of ailments, including peritonitis, it gave her the time to write. Her most famous work, The Rosary, was published in 1909 and was a tremendous success, selling over a million copies by 1921. She visited her sister in America in 1909 and toured a number of states as a member of the Chatauqua inspirational group. A devoted fan of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Barclay is said to have written The Following of the Star (1911) at Browning's graveside. Her other works include The Wheels of Time (1909), The Mistress of Shenstone (1910), Through the Postern Gate (1911), The Upas Tree (1912), The Broken Halo (1913), The Wall of Partition (1914), My Hearts' Right There (1915), The White Ladies of Worcester (1917) and Returned Empty (1920). |
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