ENGLISH SCHOOL, CIRCA 1812

Catherine Wordsworth (1808-1812) was the fourth of five children of the poet William Wordsworth (1770-1850) and his wife Mary, née Hutchinson (1770-1859). She died of convulsions on 4 June 1812, just a few months before her brother Thomas died from measles. Wordsworth's sonnet 'Surprised by Joy' is believed to have been written about Catherine, after her death.