Aug 30, 1797Mary Shelley Born

Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin is born in London. She is the only child of feminist Mary

Wollstonecraft and the political philosopher William

Godwin.

Sep 10, 1797Mother Dies

Mary Wollstonecraft dies as a result of

complications from childbirth.

1807First Poem Published

Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin's first poem,

"Mounseer Nongtongpaw," is published by the press

owned by her father and stepmother.

Jun 1812Moves to Scotland

To separate Mary from her stepmother, William Godwin sends his daughter to stay with the Baxter family in

Dundee, Scotland. She stays there until November,

becoming close friends with the Baxters' daughter Isabel.

Mar 1814Meets Percy Shelley

Upon returning from Scotland, Mary Godwin meets Percy

Bysshe Shelley, a young poet and an admirer of her father's who visits their home often. He also happens to be married to a

woman named Harriet Westbrook, with whom he has

one young daughter and another child on the way. Mary and Percy Shelley soon fall in

love.

Jul 1814Elopes With Shelley

Sixteen-year-old Mary runs off with Percy Shelley to Europe.

Her stepsister Claire Clairmont accompanies them.

Mary Godwin becomes pregnant almost immediately. William Godwin is furious and refuses to see his daughter for the next two and a half

years.

Sep 13, 1814Returns to London

Mary Godwin, Claire Clairmont and Percy Shelley return to London. Mary is penniless,

pregnant, and a social outcast due to her having run off with a

married man. The couple is forced to live apart while

Shelley goes into hiding to escape his creditors.

Feb 22, 1815Gives Birth to DaughterMary Godwin gives birth to the couple's first child, a

daughter named Clara. The baby is two months

premature and dies only a few weeks after birth.

Jan 24, 1816Gives Birth to SonMary Godwin gives birth to the couple's

second child, William.

Jun 1816Conceives Frankenstein

The Shelleys take a summer holiday in Switzerland with Lord

Byron and his pregnant lover Claire Clairmont. While stuck in the house one rainy afternoon,

Lord Byron suggests a contest to see who can write the best ghost story. Shelley sketches the tale

that becomes Frankenstein.

Oct 9, 1816Fanny Godwin Dies

Mary Godwin's older half-sister Fanny Imlay

Godwin commits suicide with an overdose of

laudanum.

Dec 1816Shelley's Wife DiesShelley's wife Harriet

Westbrook commits suicide by throwing herself into

London's Serpentine River. She was pregnant with the

couple's third child.

Dec 30, 1816Marriage

A pregnant Mary Godwin marries Percy Bysshe

Shelley at St. Mildred's Church in London. She

reconciles with her father.

May 14, 1817Gives Birth to DaughterMary Shelley gives birth to her third child, a daughter

named Clara Everina. Shortly after the birth she publishes

a book about her 1814 elopement with Shelley entitled History of a Six

Weeks' Tour.

Jan 1, 1818Frankenstein

PublishedFrankenstein is

published anonymously, to immediate and wild

success.

Mar 1818Travels to Italy

The Shelleys travel to Italy in order to convince Lord Byron to give his estranged lover

Claire Clairmont access their child. They remain in Italy for

several years.

Sep 24, 1818Daughter Dies

Clara Everina contracts dysentery and dies in

Italy.

Jun 7, 1819Son Dies

The Shelleys' three-year-old son William dies of

malaria in Italy. The couple now has no living children, though Mary is pregnant

with their fourth.

Nov 12, 1819Gives Birth to Son

Mary Shelley gives birth to the couple's son Percy Florence, the only one of their children to outlive

his parents.

Jul 8, 1822Percy Bysshe Shelley Dies

Percy Shelley drowns in the Gulf of Spezia while sailing with a

friend. A devastated Mary Shelley has his

body cremated.

Aug 25, 1823Returns to EnglandMary Shelley and her son Percy Florence arrive in Italy from

England.

1824Shelley's Poems Halted

Mary Shelley begins editing a book of her late husband's

poems for publication. She is forced to stop when her father-

in-law threatens to cut off support to her and her son

unless she pledges never to publish any of his son's works

during his lifetime.

Apr 7, 1836Father Dies

William Godwin dies in London.

Nov 1839Shelley's Poems Published

Mary Shelley edits and publishes the collected poems

of her late husband Percy Bysshe Shelley. Percy Shelley's

father agreed to the publication, so long as it

contained no memoirs of his son. The following month she

publishes a collection of Shelley's essays and assorted

writing.