Margaret Oliphant - Sir Robert's Fortune: "All perfection is melancholy"

The life of Margaret Oliphant Wilson was marked by both literary achievement and profound personal tragedy. After publishing her first novel in 1849, she married and had six children, but faced devastating losses, including the deaths of three infants and her husband due to tuberculosis. As a single mother, she relied on her writing to support her remaining children, achieving significant recognition over a prolific thirty-year career. Despite her success, the continued loss of her children deeply affected her, leading to a decline in her health and spirit until her death in 1897.