Victorian literature Victorian literature Victorian literature is literature, mainly written in English, during the reign of Queen Victoria (1837–1901) (the Victorian era). It was preceded by Romanticism and followed by the Edwardian era (1901–1910). While in the preceding Romantic period, poetry had been the dominant genre, it was the novel that was most important in the Victorian period. Charles Dickens (1812–1870) dominated the first part of Victoria's reign: his first novel, "The Pickwick Papers", was published in 1836, and his last "Our Mutual Friend" between 1864–5. William Thackeray's (1811–1863) most famous work "Vanity Fair" appeared in 1848, and the three Brontë sisters,
Portsmouth (instrumental) Portsmouth (instrumental) "Portsmouth" is a traditional English folk dance tune, similar to an Irish or Scottish hornpipe melody. It is sometimes referred to as the "Portsmouth Hornpipe". "Portsmouth" appeared in the 11th edition of John Playford's "The Dancing Master" in 1701. It is also one of the three arrangements on which English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams based his "Sea Songs", originally arranged for military band in 1923 as the second movement of his "English Folk Song Suite", and subsequently re-arranged for full orchestra in 1942 by the composer. In the 1950s it was used as the signature tune for BBC