Virginia Woolf: Life and Background

Abstract

Virginia Stephen was born on 25 January, 1882 at 22 Hyde Park Gate, London, within easy reach of the part of London which forms the setting for Mrs. Dalloway. She was the third child (the others were Vanessa, Thoby and Adrian) of Sir Leslie Stephen’s marriage to Julia Duckworth (née Pattle) in 1878. Both parents had been married before, so the family was both large and diverse. From the Duckworth side came three children: George, Stella and Gerald. From the Stephen side came Laura who, like Virginia, inherited the family madness.