Biography

Mariana Starke was born October 23, 1762, in Surrey, England, the eldest child of her parents Mary and Richard Starke (Colbert, 2020).

One of her earlier works was a co-translation with Millecent Parkhurst, later Thomas Parkhurst, on Theatre of Education by Madame de Genlis in (1787) (Colbert, 2020). This is what kick started her career in writing plays which was something that she found to be of pleasure in the following years. She wrote a comedy and published it anonymously the following year, it was called The Sword of Peace and it was performed at the Hay Market in London on August 9th, 1788 (Colbert, 2020). As the article talks about her writings, it also describes her acting in a play with her brother, so you can say that theatre was something she was quite passionate about. The play was called The British Orphan and it was performed at a private theatre that was owned by Mary (Clark) Crespigny’s located in Camberwell, in April of 1790. She wrote other works like Widow of Malabar (1791) which was a long poem and a tragedy, and another called The Poor Soldier (1789) both of which were dedicated to Mary Crespigny who Starke had a close friendship to in those years (Colbert, 2020). 

In the year 1792, Starke and both her parents, including her sister Louisa left England for the south of France and Italy (Colbert, 2020). All of whom, besides Starke herself, were said to be suffering from tuberculosis in various stages, putting her writing aside for the time being she was tasked with the job of nursing her family back to health. Unfortunately, Mariana’s youngest sister, Louisa did not make it and died in 1792 on the journey to Italy from Nice, and within the next two years her dad would have passed in Pisa (Colbert, 2020). Although, Starke was able to keep her mother in good health until she returned to England in 1798 were she fell to a protracted illness herself.  

Mariana found herself in France during the war and got to witness the first entrance of the French into Italy, when she was in Tuscany when Leghorn was seized by the French and tried to revolutionize Florence, and Starke was in Rome when the Papal government was overthrown by France (Thane, 2020). 

Starke was still able to produce an edition of travel notes from her journey, which were under the imprint of Sir Richard Phillips (Colbert, 2020) even though she had fallen sick herself at the time. These travel notes were produced as Letters from Italy and it came out in 1800, two years later, augmented and reprinted again by Sir Richard Philips, was Travels in Italy. From these travel notes there is a quotation from when the city in Italy was being bombarded, “immediately went to the quay, with an intention of hiring an English merchantman (our nation being at peace with France), and getting my family and friends embarked before the city was bombarded, a circumstance which we hourly expected to take place; but no English vessel could I find ready for sea…’ (…) Advised to make as little parade as possible on our way to the port, my family went two and two by different paths, while I, being obliged to stay to the last, walked down, dressed as a servant, passing all the French posts without the smallest molestation” (Thane, 2020). 

Throughout her travels some have even called her the “proto-feminist of travel writing,” even though she made it clear that countries were not especially dangerous (Thane, 2020). She has influenced women to go out and travel and not be afraid, “We request therefore that all nervous ladies and timid maids discard their fears of finding a blood-drinking brigand under the lee of every rock, and a murderous gun behind every bush; and advise that if this dread was all that impeded their journey, to set of instantly with Starke’s travelling guide in their carriages” (Thane, 2020). Showing that women's worries are to be set aside because the joy of travelling is so much more important than the fear of the unknown. 

  Years later and Starke has decided to settle her life in Exmouth, where she is not travelling the continent, sometime around 1811 where she begins writing again, a piece called The Beauties of Carlo Maria Maggi, she printed from a local called Shirley Woolmer (Colbert, 2020). Now that she has settled, Starke she contacted John Murray in March of 1814 about the idea of expanding her piece Letters from Italy under his imprint now that the former Philips is retired. She had an idea in mind, “[a work] that ‘comprehends every kind of information most needful to continental travellers’ would, in the event of peace between England and France, support the ‘immediate & immense’ emigration likely to ensue. ‘Allow me to enquire’... ‘whether, if that event occurs, you would like to purchase the above-named work’” (Colbert, 2020). After much fight she ended up going with G. and S. Robinson for the new edition of Letters from Italy. Although Murray soon realized that the demand for accurate up-to-date information about continental destinations was high because many travellers found it useful to have a guide before going to a place (Colbert, 2020). Soon after with her next pieces of work Travels on the Continent in 1820 and Travels in Europe in 1828 were published by Murray. When these books were published it was emphasized how useful they would be for travellers and these copies went on to be prototypes for a handbook for travellers that Murray produced himself as well as these went out to be a prototype for other guidebook series (Colbert, 2020). Starke began working on a fourth edition of her travel notes that, “incorporated material from a further continental tour and residence in Italy that dated May 1717- June 1819” (Colbert, 2020). Only to be followed by a fifth edition with the title Information and Directions for Travellers on the Continent. With further editions and the success of her travel guides, Starke was faced with people copying her work and bookstores like Galignani's selling false copies, and told Murray that, “he would need to do more to maintain sufficient stocks of the authentic version for sale abroad” (Colbert, 2020). She even told Galignani’s that she would supply them with direct new materials so that her work was not compromised anymore, although the experience was tough, it all worked out in the end with much travel on Starke’s part 

Mariana Starke’s book was clearly popular there was no denying that, although with all success comes hateful critique. In a satiric by John Bull Verses Written in a Blank Leaf of Mrs. Starke’s “Guide for Travellers” he says, “‘She calls Italians “civil,” / Yet says “they often cheat;” / And that you “first must bargain” / For all you buy and eat’” and later she receives a letter, and someone was, “protesting that if I persevered in opening the eyes of traveller with respect to expenses on the continent I might expect to be assassinated” (Colbert, 2020). It is to be expect though, with one's point of view, may be useful to one person may be offensive, it is just how things go. Throughout the hate, Starke continued writing about her travels because it was important to her and what she was passionate about. She worked until she could not work anymore, she died on her way back from Naples on April 18th, 1838, at the age of 76 (Colbert, 2020).