Special Sub-Topic: The Life of Thomas Hardy Click Here To Play: The Life of Thomas Hardy

Hardy died on January 11th, 1928. How old was he then?

87. He was born on June 2, 1840 in Higher Bockhampton, Dorset.

He was what by training?

Architect. He was apprenticed to a local architect, John Hicks, from 1856 to 1862. He then moved to London where he worked for Arthur Blomfield until 1867, before returning to Dorset to work for Hicks once again. By 1874 his books earned him so much money, that he could focus entirely on writing. Hardy was a fairly good architect, winning prizes from the Royal Institute of British Architects and the Architectural Association.

In 1874 Hardy married for the first time. Who was his first wife?

Emma Gifford. Bathsheba Everdene was the heroine in "Far From the Madding Crowd", Eustacia Vye was a character in "The Return of the Native" and Grace Melbury is the main character in "The Woodlanders". Emma Gifford was born, like Hardy, in 1840 and she died in 1912.

Hardy was the son of Thomas and Jemima Hardy. What was his father's occupation?

Mason. Thomas Hardy Sr. (d. 1892) was a builder and master mason, and also an able violin player.

In 1905 Hardy received an honorary degree from which Scottish university?

Aberdeen. Although already a famous author for thirty years at the time, this was his first degree of any kind received for his writing, making it a very special one. He later received honorary degrees from Cambridge, Oxford, St. Andrews and Bristol.

In 1885 the Hardys moved into a house on the outskirts of Dorchester, designed by Thomas Hardy himself. He lived there until his death in 1928. What is the name of the house (which is still standing)?

Max Gate. Today Max Gate is owned by the National Trust, and is open for visitors from March to September. Keepers Cottage is a present day B&B near Hardy's birth place in Higher Bockhampton. Athelhampton House was the home of friends of Hardys, and is also referred to in a few of his poems. Auchinleck House was the home of Scottish diarist and biographer James Boswell (1740-1795), and has absolutely nothing to do with Hardy.

In 1915 Hardy remarried. What was the name of his second wife?

Florence Dugdale. Florence Dugdale (1879-1937) had known Hardy since 1905 and became his secretary. After his death she published "The Early Life of Thomas Hardy" and the "Later Years of Thomas Hardy". The biography is generally believed to be mostly written by Hardy himself before he died. Claire Skinner, Polly Walker and Pauline Peters are all actresses who have appeared in movies based on Hardy's books.

Hardy stopped writing novels after the publication of "Jude the Obscure". When was it published?

1895. "Jude the Obscure" didn't accord with the morals of the time, and the Bishop of Wakefield even burned a copy of the book. Hardy wrote only poetry for the rest of his life - excepting his biography, which in some parts were also a work of fiction.

Hardy's ashes are interred in Westminster Abbey. Where does his heart lie?

Stinsford Cemetery. His heart lies in his first wife's grave at Stinsford Cemetery. A Dorchester Cemetery does exist, but Hardys heart isn't buried there. No Hardy memorial exists in Oxford. A rumour has it that Hardy's heart was actually eaten by his housekeeper's cat shortly after his death and that the heart actually buried at Stinsford is that of a pig. It is probably just a myth, but you'll never know.

A statue of Hardy stands in Dorchester. Where?

Top O' Town. The status was unveiled in 1931 by Hardy's friend Sir James Barrie (author of Peter Pan), at the place where it stands to this day, Top O' Town at the top of Dorchester High Street. It is not a very central location - in his lifetime Hardy wasn't all that popular in Dorchester for having based many of his characters on real persons from the area.