author
Elizabeth Godfrey
1853–1918
A Victorian novelist and historian who published under the name Elizabeth Godfrey, she brought English and German history to life in fiction and nonfiction alike.
1 Audiobook
The New Forest
by Elizabeth Godfrey
About the author
Jessie Bedford, better known by the pen name Elizabeth Godfrey, was a British writer born in 1853. Reliable bibliographic and reference sources identify her as the author of about ten novels, along with historical works including writing on the Stuarts, German history, and a biography of Elisabeth of the Palatinate.
Sources on her life describe her as the daughter of Rev. James Bedford of Twyford, Hampshire. She was educated at home and traveled in Germany when she was young, experiences that fit neatly with the strong interest in German subjects seen in her later books.
She died in 1918. Though not widely famous today, her work still stands out for its mix of storytelling and historical curiosity, especially for readers who enjoy late Victorian fiction shaped by real people and past eras.