Author: Hobday, William Armfield
Biography:
HOBDAY, William Armfield (1771-1831: ODNB), pseudonym Sam Satiricus
A satire about the current scandal over the relationship between Frederick, Duke of York, and his mistress Mary Anne (or Ann) Clarke who had just published her memoirs, The Cyprian of St. Stephen’s, published at Bath and London in 1809,has generally been attributed to “W. Hobday.” HL codify the attribution. Nevertheless, it is questionable. (Another candidate for the attribution is W. H. Ireland, q.v.) “W. Hobday” can refer only to William Armfield Hobday, since other William Hobdays of the time were merchants or tradesmen in the south or north of the country, and not writers. William Armfield Hobday was not a writer either. He was a well known painter of portraits, especially miniatures, especially of fashionable women--including royalty. He was living in Bristol in the west of England at the time. The poem is accompanied by a plate representing Mrs. Clarke “painted from the Life”: this appears to be the basis of the attribution. But Bristol is not Bath and the caption on the plate attributes it not to Hobday but to G. A. Keman of Bond St., London. Hobday was born in Birmingham in 1771, the son of Elisabeth (Armfield) and Samuel Hobday. He went to London in 1786, first as an apprentice to an engraver and then as a student at the Royal Academy Schools. Without completing his program, he established himself as a portraitist in London with considerable success. His way of life was extravagant, however, and from 1804 to 1817 he lived in Bristol, perhaps attempting to limit his expenses. After returning to London he became involved in financial speculation and was obliged to declare bankruptcy in 1829. He married Elizabeth Dorothy Ivory (d 1829) about 1800; no public record of the marriage has been found. With her he had at least three children. After her death he married Maria Ustanson on 31 Oct. 1830, but he died shortly after of “inflammation of the lungs” on 17 Feb. 1831 and was buried on 23 Feb. at St. Bride’s, Fleet St. (ODNB 28 Aug. 2022; ancestry.com 17 Feb. 2022; findmypast.com 28 Aug. 2022; HL)
Other Names:
- W. Hobday