Reeve, Clara, 1729-1807 (Library of Congress Name Authority)—

A landmark figure in the development of the Gothic novel, Reeve was also a poet, educational writer, and literary critic. Her Original Poems in Several Occasions appeared in 1769 under the initials C.R. Reeve's most significant novel was The Champion of Virtue. A Gothic Story (1777), republished as The Old English Baron (1778). Its preface offers important comments on the theory of the Gothic novel. Her historical novel Memoirs of Sir Roger de Clarendon, the Natural Son of Edward Prince of Wales, Commonly Called the Black Prince (1793) is also noteworthy.

Read, John—

A clerk assistant to the House of Commons, Read was close enough friend to Samuel Richardson that Richardson intended to leave Read a mourning ring, but was prevented by Read's own death.

Raleigh, Walter, Sir, 1552?-1618 (Library of Congress Name Authority)—

Knighted by Queen Elizabeth, Sir Walter Raleigh was an author, explorer, and statesman. Although Sir Walter was a favorite of the Queen, he was accused of treason by her successor, James I, making Sir Walter a controversial figure during his lifetime. Sir Walter's writing addresses the Queen's betrayal in allowing his imprisonment, as well as endeavors to disprove the charges of atheism brought against him.