Wilde was forced to pay Queensberry's legal fees, which left him bankrupt.ġ894 photograph of Lord Alfred Douglas (left) and Oscar Wilde (right).įollowing his unsuccessful libel case, Wilde was arrested on Apon charges of gross indecency. The Marquess of Queensberry was found not guilty. However, Queensberry's lawyers persuaded the jury that there had been no libel because Wilde was, in fact, homosexual. Written on the back of the card was the message For Oscar Wilde, Posing Somdomite (an incorrect spelling of the word sodomite). On February 18, 1895, the Marquess of Queensberry left a calling card for Wilde at a London private gentleman's club. Lord Alfred Douglas' father, the Marquess of Queensberry, disapproved of his son's lifestyle and his friendship with Wilde, suspecting that the two were lovers. Wilde had had homosexual relationships with men in the past but it was Lord Alfred Douglas who introduced him to Victorian England's gay sub-culture and the availability of male prostitutes. In 1891, Wilde was introduced to Lord Alfred Douglas, known to his friends as Bosie. The couple had two sons Vyvyan and Cyril. He eventually found great success with his comic plays. After his graduation form Oxford, Wilde moved to London and began his writing career. Wilde studied Greek and Latin literature at Trinity College, Dublin and later at Magdalen College, Oxford. Wilde was educated at home until he was nine years old, a German tutor and a French maid taught him their languages which he learnt to speak fluently. His mother Jane Francesca Wilde was a lifelong supporter of Irish independence and wrote poetry in support of Irish nationhood under the pseudonym Speranza (Italian for hope). His father Sir William Wilde was Ireland's leading eye and ear surgeon and was knighted for his services to medicine. Oscar Wilde was born in Dublin to intellectual parents. After his release from prison, Wilde went into exile in France and spent the remaining few years of his life in ill-health and poverty. Wilde was found guilty of gross indecency and homosexuality (a criminal offense in Britain at the time) and sentenced to two years hard labor. In 1895, while Wilde was at the height of his success and fame and The Importance of Being Earnest was still being performed on the London stage, he was arrested on charges of gross indecency. Wilde wrote several articles for The Pall Mall Gazette and other London newspapers and was the editor of The Woman's World magazine. However, during his writing career Wilde also wrote poetry, essays, a novel ( The Picture of Dorian Gray) and short stories for adults and children. Oscar Wilde is best known today as a playwright, his most famous play being the comedy The Importance of Being Earnest.
Wilde was one of the most famous people of his time, well known not only for his writings but also for his sparkling conversation, biting wit and the flamboyant manner in which he dressed. Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (OctoNovember 30, 1900) was an Irish writer who wrote in English and French and spent most of his working life in London.
Oscar Wilde, photograph taken in New York in 1882.
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