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Howard Staunton, circa 1810-1874, Chess Player, Shakespeare Editor
I am researching into the life of Howard Staunton, the famous chess player, who gave his name to the Staunton pattern of chessmen. By defeating the Frenchman, Pierre St. Amant, in a famous match in Paris in 1843, Staunton established a reputation as the strongest chess player in Europe - many assumed he was the best in the world. Staunton was also a respected Shakespeare scholar, his achievements including an edition of the complete works and a lithograph edition of the 1623 folio; he served on the executive committee of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust and was an honorary member of the Shakespeare Society of Germany. Who was this man who achieved so much in two entirely separate fields?
As a genealogist and chess enthusiast, I am seeking to throw light on Staunton’s life, especially on his parentage and early life. I have spent much of my leisure time for several years in searching countless manuscripts, books, newspapers, websites and indexes in various record offices and libraries. As a result , my Staunton research notes now comprise a huge volume of genealogical and biographical data. Whilst much of it is inevitably of a speculative nature, many new facts have also been established, which I believe have not been published. I have begun to write up my gleanings in the form of chapters and am hoping that some form of publication may be possible in due course. Meanwhile, the research continues.
Now would be a very good time to send me any snippets of information, however small, about Staunton’s life prior to his marriage in 1849 to Frances Carpenter Nethersole. Any addresses, early letters, names of friends and contacts (chess or otherwise), literary and theatrical associations, or notes about his religious convictions, work or leisure pursuits, would be extremely welcome. New information received may tie in with data which I already possess.
Please e-mail all suggestions and feedback to:
Random Staunton Jottings: France, 1844
The date of Staunton’s return match with St. Amant in Paris was fixed as 15 October 1844 (Chess Player’s Chronicle, Vol. V, p. 315, and Vol. VI, p. 145). Staunton wrote a letter from London, dated 21 Sept. 1844, which appeared in C.P.C. (Vol. V, p. 316). In Le Palamede (1844, p. 467) the date of the letter is given as 22 Sept. 1844, and it contains an interesting postscript which was not printed in C.P.C.:
The above is, presumably, St. Amant’s translation of Staunton’s postscript, and I am not aware that his original English is available. Staunton goes on to mention that Von der Lasa will probably visit Paris during the coming match. About that time Staunton was in correspondence with Von der Lasa, who wrote during September from Trèves [in Germany] (C.P.C., Vol. V, p. 317).
If Staunton had proceeded with his declared plan to spend a week with a friend, one might expect that he would have crossed the Channel on or about 1st October. We read in The Times (25 October 1844): “On his journey from England he caught a cold, which eventually fell on his chest and caused so much inflammation as to require copious bleeding." Thomas Bryan states that Staunton and his friends arrived in Paris on 11 October 1844 (C.P.C., Vol. VI, p. 145). He goes on to explain that Staunton accepted the duty of introducing his friends "to those who by a community of taste and language might aid to amuse and entertain them; and hardly had he visited the most intimate of his acquaintance before he was attacked by that severe and dangerous illness which confined him to his chamber ...". Question: Did Staunton proceed with his plan to spend a week with his friend, or did he travel from England directly to Paris ?
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Opposite: Howard Staunton from an engraving. This accompanied his obituary in the Illustrated London News, 4 July 1874; he had been their chess correspondent since February 1845.
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