11 Facts About Sharon Turner

Sharon Turner left school at fifteen to be articled to an attorney in the Temple.

Sharon Turner became a solicitor but left the profession after he became interested in the study of Icelandic and Anglo-Saxon literature.

Sharon Turner settled himself in Red Lion Square near the British Museum, staying there for sixteen years.

When his friend Isaac D'Israeli left the synagogue after a dispute with the rabbi, Sharon Turner persuaded him to have his children, including the future Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, baptised in the Church of England, to give them a better chance in life.

Sharon Turner's publisher sent him clean paper but Turner did not use it.

Sharon Turner demonstrated Anglo-Saxon liberty "in the shape of a good constitution, temperate kingship, the witenagemot, and general principles of freedom".

Sharon Turner researched extensively the collections in the British Museum and the manuscripts of Sir Robert Cotton.

Sharon Turner continued the narrative in several subsequent works: History of England During the Middle Ages, a multi-volume publication covering English history from the reign of William the Conqueror to the accession of Henry VIII; History of the Reign of Henry VIII; and History of the Reigns of Edward VI, Mary, and Elizabeth.

Sharon Turner authored a Sacred History of the World, a translation of Beowulf and a poem on Richard III.

Sharon Turner was buried in a brick vault at West Norwood Cemetery.

Sharon Turner's son-in-law was William Ellis, an educationalist and economist who tutored the British royal family.