Grace Aguilar

Grace Aguilar was born in London and lived in Devon and Brighton before returning to her city of birth. A celebrated writer, she was mainly educated at home by her Sephardic family, whose cultural history often inspired her work. She was prolific in a variety of literary genres, including historical novels, poetry, religious works, and translations. Though she supported Jewish reform—notably religious education for Jewish women—she opposed assimilation; her views invited a wide and varied readership; of note was her intellectual relationship with American editor Isaac Leeser. In poor health for most of her life, Aguilar died on a convalescent trip to Frankfurt, where she is buried.