George Bernard Shaw

1856 - 1950

 

G. B. Shaw (1856 - 1950)
© Reproduced with the kind permission of the National Trust (U. K.)

The dramatist G.B. Shaw, who was born in Dublin in 1856, was a collateral descendant of Sir Robert Shaw, M.P. In 1876, G.B. Shaw moved to London , where he established himself as a leading music and theatre critic and became a member of the Fabian Society. While his earliest literary career was as a novelist, he began to write plays from 1898. His many plays include: Candida, Back to Methuselah, Caesar and Cleopatra, Androcles and the Lion, Major Barbara and Saint Joan. Shaw received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1925.

The play Pygmalion, written in 1912, features the character of a flowergirl named Eliza Doolittle. Interestingly, the same name is listed as a beneficiary in an 1823 deed of release of legacies, of which Sir Robert Shaw, M.P. was the executor. It is hard to surmise how G. B. Shaw was aware of the name Eliza Doolittle, as her connection was obviously with the Wilkinson family who were related to Sir Robert by marriage. We can only suppose that G.B. Shaw came across her name in such deeds or family letters, drawing inspiration from his family papers to aid his literary creations.

Correspondence between G.B. Shaw and City Manager 10/2/1946
©2003 The Estate of Bernard Shaw (held in Dublin City Archives) Reproduced by permission of the Society of Authors, on behalf of the Bernard Shaw Estate for a three year period to March 2006.

G.B. Shaw was a recipient of the Honorary Freedom of the City of Dublin in 1946. It is the highest honour the City Council may bestow and it is conferred very rarely. The recipient becomes an Honorary Citizen of Dublin and although no financial or other benefits are attached to the award, the prestige which it carries is immense. The Honorary Freedom of Dublin was instituted under the Municipal Privileges Act, 1876 and is currently conferred under the provisions of the Local Government Act 1991. View the full list of recipients of the Freedom of Dublin.


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