Washington Irving
Washington Irving was an American author of the early nineteenth century. He served as American ambassador to England and later to Spain. He spoke Spanish. He was a prolific essayist who wrote widely respected biographies of George Washington and Mohammad as well as other historical figures. He also wrote books on 15th Century Spain dealing with subjects such as Columbus, the Moors, and the Alhambra. He travelled on the Western frontier in the 1830s and was one of the few 19th figures to speak out against the mishandling of relations with the native American tribes by Europeans. He is said to have mentored authors such as Hawthorne, Longfellow, and Poe.
Death Date: November 28, 1859
Irving is best known for two stories:
- "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"
- "Rip Van Winkle"
Rip Van Winkle is a man who sleeps for a hundred years and wakes in a world he cannot recognize. The name "Rip Van Winkle" has gone into the language to describe people who awake and cannot recognize their surroundings.