George Bernard Shaw (July 26, 1856-November 2, 1950) is best known for his humorous plays, political essays, and other writings. The son of Lucinda Elizabeth Gurly and George Carr Shaw, he was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, along with his two sisters, Lucinda Frances and Elinor Agnes. His mother and sisters moved to London, England, in 1873 with her music teacher, George John Lee; his father remained in Dublin. George Bernard Shaw joined them there in 1876.
During his first years in Dublin, Shaw frequented the British Museum's reading room, where he worked on several unsuccessful novels and short stories, as well as a few early plays. By the mid-1880s he had become committed to Socialism; he regularly delivered political speeches, wrote extensively about political issues, and was prominently involved with groups such as the Fabian Society and the Independent Labour Party. In 1885, he found work as a journalist, publishing criticism of theater, books, fine art, and music. Shaw continued to compose and publish comedic plays and became, by the turn of the century, one of Great Britain's most famous and highly regarded playwrights. Shaw received the Nobel Prize in Literature for 1925 and maintained his literary output until his death from kidney failure in 1950.
Shaw married Charlotte Frances Payne-Townshend (1857-1943), also a native of Ireland, in 1898; they had no children. The Shaws lived at 10 Adlephi Terrace from 1898 to 1927 and then moved into a flat at Whitehall Court; additionally, they maintained a country home in Ayot St. Lawrence, Hertfordshire, from 1906 until Shaw's death. The site, known as Shaw's Corner, is now administered by the National Trust.
Sources
Weintraub, Stanley. "Shaw, George Bernard." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Online edition. Oxford University Press, 2013. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/36047
Author: Meg Hixon
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