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The Last Chronicle of Barset (Penguin Classics)

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THE LAST CHRONICLE OF BARSET is one of the great novels in the English language, and yet it is not widely read. The reason for this is obvious: it is the LAST novel in the Barsetshire series of novels, and a relatively small number make it all the way through the previous five volumes. This is a shame, because while all the previous novels are quite excellent and thoroughly entertaining, the final novel in the series is a work of an entirely different level of magnitude.

This novel is also one of the darkest that Trollope wrote. The moral dilemma in which Crawley finds himself would seem to belong more readily to the world of Dostoevsky than Victorian England.

Can this novel be read on its own, without reading the novels that precede it? Yes, but I do feel that it is best read after working through the other books in the series first. This is hardly an unfortunate situation, since all the books in the series are superb (with the exception of the first novel, THE WARDEN, which, while nice, is merely a prelude to the far superior five novels that came after it). Many of the characters in THE LAST CHRONICLE appeared first as characters in the other novels, and the central character of the book, Crawley, himself appeared earlier.

Trollope is...one of the most entertaining writers the English language has produced. At this point I have read around 20 of his novels, and fully intend to read more. But of all his books, this one might be his finest. The only two that I feel are close to the same level are his incredible books THE WAY WE LIVE NOW and HE KNEW HE WAS RIGHT (possibly the finest work on excessive jealousy since OTHELLO). Anyone who loves the English novel owes it to him or herself to read as many of these volumes as possible. My recommendation would be to read first the six novels in the Barsetshire Chronicles, and then to move on to the other two novels I mentioned. If still hooked, then try his other major series of novels, variously known as the Political novels or the Palliser novels or the Parliamentary novels, which begin with CAN YOU FORGIVE HER?

The Rev. Josiah Crawley, impoverished curate of Hogglestock, has been accused of stealing a check for 20 pounds. Confused about how the check came into his possession, he has no defense to offer. Mrs. Proudie, shrewish tyrant over her husband, the Bishop, is determined to hound Crawley out of his meager position. Also caught up in the problem is young Henry Grantly, son of the aristocratic Archdeacon, who is in love with the beautiful and intelligent daughter of the accused man--a match that his father bitterly opposes.

This is the main plot, but there is a wealth of subplots, each worthy of its own novel. Among these is a continuation of John Eames' wooing of Lily Dale, carried over from "The Small House at Allington."

The Last Chronicle is the longest of the Barsetshire novels--and the best, considerably better in style than the more popular "Barchester Towers." Trollope's characterizations are, as usual, superb, among the very best in all literature. He skillfully interweaves all the various strands of the novel into a very satisfying whole. And he has largely freed himself from the sometimes annoying philosophical asides to the reader that detracted from some of his earlier novels. This book merits consideration as a true masterwork.

As time passes, the novels of Anthony Trollope (1815-1882) seem to gain in freshness, stature and influence. He lived long enough to see his modest reputation fade, in contrast to that of many of his famous novelist contemporaries. Nowadays the situation seems to be reversing.

Of special merit, amongst his huge output, are the so-called Barsetshire ("clerical") novels, and the so-called Palliser ("political") novels. Of the former, the last and longest is "The Last Chronicle of Barset". Not only are there fresh concerns, complications and current affairs introduced here, but there are also fond and final appearances of people and places encountered in the earlier Barsetshire novels. Everybody's favourite literary virago, Mrs Proudie, is again denouncing and dominating everybody. Trollope even contrives to create a character who has the temerity to say to her, "Peace, Woman!"

There are the innumerable characters of marriageable age, whose names are perhaps more memorable than their characters, whose charming dialogues and relationship problems are deftly laid out and interwoven. Above all, there is master story-teller Anthony Trollope, admitting finally that for him Barset has been a real place, a place where he as been induced to wander too long by his "love of old friendships, and by the sweetness of old faces".

Superb TV and radio adaptations of Trollope's Barsetshire novels have appeared in recent years. His novels read aloud well, too, and audio cassette readings, some of them unabridged, can provide endless hours of rich listening pleasure.

How one man could hold in his mind so much of his age, and then relate it back to us peopled with so many and varied characters in--how many? 20?-- interconnected novels of surpassing richness of detail and sagacity of moral observation, is a great mystery of human psychology.

"The Last Chronicle of Barset" is surely one of the most successful and satisfying of the whole Barset and Palliser series, illustrating perhaps better than any of the former Trollope's admirable gift for creating multi-dimensional characters that are as recognizable to us today as they were in his time.

The Last Chronicle of Barset is the final, longest (862 pages) and best of the Barset novels of Anthony Trollope (1815-1882). The novels comprising the clerical series are: The Warden; Barchester Towers; Doctor Thorne; Framley Parsonage; The Small House at Allington and The Last Chronicle of Barset. This novel was written and published serially in 1866-1867. It is a massive three decker in the Victorian style. The prolific Trollope authored over 40 novels, short-stories and travel accounts in his storied career. The Last Chronicle of Barset has several characters and stories any one of which could have made a full fledged novel in itself! The main players are:
Josiah Crawley-The eccentric pastor of the poor Hogglestock bricklayer parish is accused of stealing a check for 20 pounds. Lawyer Mr. Toogood, the Grantleys and Lady Lufton seek to win him acquittal. We see this gloomy man put his wife Mary and daughters Grace and Jane through the purgatory of suffering and dread as his case is due to be brought up before the assizes. Crawley is one of the most interesting characters in all of Trollope's voluminous writing.
Several love stories are reported:
a. Johnny Eames still loves Lily Dale. Lily jilted him for the rake Adolphus Cosbie seven years previous to the opening of the novel. Johnny has a good job in London but Lily still says no. Will she marry Johnny or will she wed Adolphus? Or will she write two letters after her name "OM" for Old Maid? Read the novel and see!
b. Major Henry Grantley is the son of archdeacon Grantley. He is widowed with a small daughter. Henry falls in love with the intelligent and beautiful Grace Crawley daughter of the accused thief the Rev. Josiah Crawley. Will true love conquer?
c. The London artist Conway Dalrymple is torn between a married woman
and Miss Van Siever. Whom will he choose as his life's companion? This story has little to do with the action in Barsetshire and was added by Trollope to fulfill his contract for so many pages per month to a periodical.
In addition to the mystery regarding the theft of the check and the usual Trollopian love stories there are two key deaths of major characters in the Barset series:
a. The Rev. Septimus Harding-the aged fathere of Eleanor Arabin the dean's wife and Susan Harding the spouse of the archedeacon of Barset.
Mr. Harding is one of the kindest men seen in the pages of English fiction.
b. Mrs. Proudie-the busybody, interfering, harridan who has made her husband her uxorious tool dies of a heart attack in this final volume. She is one of the best comical characters in fiction.
There is also a suicide of a minor character Mr. Broughton.
I have read these Barset novels for many years and they are eminently worthy of rereading! Countless hours of pleasure and profitable wisdom await those who have the time and patience to devote to a huge Victorian novel. I was touched by Trollope's final paragraphs in which he bids adieu to Barset and the characters he so lovingly created with his genius pen.

The Last Chronicle of Barset,the final book in the Barsetshire series, is among the best novels Anthony Trollope ever wrote, and that is saying something special, for Trollope is, in my opinion, one of the finest English novelists. The Last Chronicle of Barset brings together many of the characters introduced to the reader in the first five novels of the series; we are happy to see our old friends back in action one last time.

Septimus Harding, the Warden in the first novel of that name in the series, makes his final, quiet appearance. He is a good and loving man, a model clergyman, and a friend, even to his adversaries. His son-in-law, Archdeacon Grantly, takes center stage again. We remember him well from his central role in battling the new Bishop of Barchester in Barchester Towers, the second and most famous book in the series -- not as good, I think, as the novel being reviewed here. Now the archdeacon is angry with his son Henry over Henry's choice of bride, the lovely Grace, daughter of the main character in the story, the reverend Josiah Crawley, who is accused of stealing a check made out for twenty pounds. The mystery of how Mr. Crawley got the money begins the final novel and is not resolved until the end of the book. One of Trollope's most famous villain's, the Bishop of Barchester's wife, Mrs. Proudie, takes a great interest in Mr. Crawley's case, much to the dismay of her long suffering husband. We have watched Mrs. Proudie cause trouble and vexation since she was introduced to us in Barchester Towers.

Many more of our friends from past novels in the series make their entrances and exits as loose ends from previous stories finally get resolved. For example, Johnny Eames and Lily Dale, two of the main characters in The Small House at Allington, my least favorite novel in the series, at last come to a final decision concerning their relationship.

The reader of this review may be wondering if it is necessary to read all the books in the Barsetshire Novels to get full value, enjoyment, and appreciation of Trollope's final story. I don't think so, not that I don't recommend reading the first five books of the series. Trollope is careful to include enough information for the reader to make sense of the various plot lines drawn from the previous stories.

The Last Chronicle of Barset is a wonderful book, almost certain to delight lovers of classic English literature. It is Trollope at the height of his powers. He is a reader's best friend; that is the highest recommendation I can give for him.

One last comment: I read the Folio edition of this novel, which I recommend. This version includes many fine drawings carefully placed throughout the text; I think most readers will enjoy this complement to the story.

There is no better way to immerse yourself in 19th century England than the works of Anthony Trollope. About every 10 years I re-read the "Barsetshire Novels" and each time re-discover what a engaging storyteller he was, what a perceptive creator of character, what an acute chronicler of his times. The Barsetshire novels are all lengthy (except for the slim prequel, "The Warden"), and "Last Chronicle" is the longest of all, but by the time you get to it you're glad it's so mammoth because you don't want to leave Trollope's world. His plots are simple: who will marry who, who will inherit what, who will rise in the Victorian world and who will fall. But his characters are so endearing, so engaging, and - some of them - so enraging. I can't recommend Trollope highly enough for anyone who wants to understand the 19th century. His books are more rural in focus than Dickens, quieter in tone and more realistic of plot. Just finishing up "Last Chronicle of Barset" and I practically want to start the whole thing over again.

The introduction notes that Trollope wrote the first novel sequences, the Barsetshire and the Palliser novels, in English. The Barsetshire books were written over a twelve year period. Mr. Crawley, perpetual curate at Hogglestock, is accused of stealing a cheque for twenty pounds. Grace Crawley, his daughter, nineteen years old, is a teacher. Dean Arabin has undertaken to finance the studies of Bob Crawley, currently in school at Marlborough, and headed for Cambridge. The son of Archdeacon Grantly, Major Grantly, is interested in Grace Crawley. Griselda Grantly, daughter of the archdeacon, is now Marchioness of Hartletop.

Mr. Crawley's role in the twenty pound cheque matter is a muddle, notwithstanding his innate honestly and his superior intellect and academic achievement. Grace Crawley and Lily Dale of Allington are friends. For Crawley's hearing, the board of magistrates includes Lord Lufton, a member of the DeCourcy family, and Dr. Thorne. Mr. Robarts advises Mrs. Crawley that he will arrange bail, should it be necessary.

The case is bound over to be heard by the Assizes in April and Mr. Crawley is released on bail, (he had refused to be represented by a lawyer). Bitterness is produced by poverty in the poor gentry. The Crawley family is in such circumstances. Behind Mr. Crawley's humility there is crushing pride. Later when Mr. Robarts tries to persuade him to accept the services of an attorney, Crawley reponds that he doesn't want to obstruct justice and is reluctant to mislead a jury.

Grace's mother seeks to shield her from the trouble and she is sent to visit Lily Dale. Mrs. Proudie worries about the souls at Hogglestock and tries to have Crawley removed from his curacy. At the preliminary stage it is not really within the bishop's power to act against Mr. Crawley. John Eames, Grace's cousin, undertakes a journey to uncover the truth in Crawley's case.

Trollope is particularly good on pecuniary matters, changes of fortune. He writes movingly, also, of honor. The portrait of Mr. Crawley, of stiff-necked pride, is a wonder. The novel is a highly satisfactory end to the Barset sextet.

Trollope ends his Barsetshire cycle of novels with the longest one of the series, but the one with the weakest plot and with a most unsatisfying resolution. But that's OK and it is usual with Trollope. He is not writing a mystery novel or a complex spy thriller. His plots may well be flat and uninteresting, but his characters gain all the more.

After all, real life seldom offers us complicated situations. Whether fortune smiles or frowns on us, we understand our lot pretty well, even if we often fail to act as we should. If our lives and situations are simple, we are not. Trollope offers us brilliantly recreated complex people from which even casual readers may draw insight into their own lives.

As usual, there are no white hats and black hats. The main character, Josiah Crawley, is an unimpeachable, principled man accused of theft. He could not have done it, but looks guilty. He stubbornly refuses all charity and comes off as dour. He wears his tattered pauper's cassock with sinful pride. But he suffers greatly and so we sympathize, empathize even as we dislike him.

Lily Dale stubbornly resists her suitor Johnny Eames. One could think of her as an early feminist if she simply stated that a woman's happiness does not necessarily require sharing her life with a man. But no: she turns down Eames because she refuses to get over a previous heartbreak.

Johnny Eames is continually refused by a Lily Dale who only offers him the "F" word (i.e. friendship), so he flirts with other women but stubbornly refuses committing to any one else because of his devotion to Lily.

Archdeacon Grantly stubbornly refuses to accept that his son may marry whomever he wishes. His son, Major Grantly, stubbornly refuses to acknowledge that his father has a right to at least have feelings about his choice of a mate.

In the end, some relent some do not; material or matrimonial happiness comes to some of the characters but not to others. But true happiness comes only to those who trust and hope whether or not they realize their temporal desires.

Indeed my favorite line in the novel is spoken by Mr. Harding, the hero of the first Barset novel and a man who sees the good even in his foes. "Why should anyone weep for those who go away full of years - and full of hope?" Happiness is to trust and to hope.

Vincent Poirier, Dublin

Over the last year I read all 12 novels comprising Trollope's two "series"... the Pallisers and the Barset novels. On the whole, I'd have to say I liked the Palliser novels much better, which could be attributed to the fact they are the later works, and thus more refined and mature. I did find it interesting, however, to watch Trollope's advancement in style from THE WARDEN to this LAST CHRONICLE... the Barset novels did come early in his career as a writer, and so it is much easier to see the evolution in the writing. I would say somewhere between FRAMLEY PARSONAGE and SMALL HOUSE AT ALLINGTON, we see the true Trollope emerge.

But I digress ... after the first five novels in the series introduce new characters, this final novel brings them all back to the stage for the final "tying up of loose ends." With the lamentable exception of Obadiah Slope, almost every major figure in the past novels makes some amount of an appearance in this work. From that standpoint alone, it is a very enjoyable read - seeing the characters whose lives we have observed come back for a final tale makes for a bittersweet ending.

As I alluded to in my title above, the novel is broken into multiple storylines that have varying degrees of intersection with one another, as is common in Trollope's work. The "A" story finds Trollope taking one of his incidental characters from FRAMLEY PARSONAGE, and thrusting him to the forefront as our "lead character." I don't know that I would quite call him the protagonist of the novel, but it is the events surrounding him that form the nucleus of the story. Josiah Crawley has been accused of stealing a check for 20 pounds, and as he cannot remember exactly where he got it from, he spends the majority of the novel dreading the coming court trial and inevitable loss of his meager income as a perpetual curate in a small country parish, while at the same time refusing, in his pride, to give up his position until he has to. Crawley is an odd character, to say the least, for Trollope to hang a novel on ... he's half-mad, destitute, extremely prideful, and generally unpleasant. He's difficult to cheer for, which is what makes it hard for me to really call him the protagonist.

Lacking a proper protagonist, then, this really becomes more of an ensemble cast
as we follow the various characters who are affected by this coming embarassment on the clergy of Barset, and we see how it turns into a rallying point for the two "factions" ... namely, the Bishop and Mrs. Proudie, who want Crawley immediately removed from his position even before the trial, and those who are of the "anti-Proudie faction" who wish to aid Crawley, despite his refusal of their help. Here we find the Grantly's, the Luftons, and a lawyer working pro-bono named Toogood.

These are the main elements of the novel, and make for an entertaining and page-turning read, which is remarkable given the sheer length of the novel, easily 200+ pages longer than SMALL HOUSE. The story comes to a head when one character, with one simple bit of information, turns the entire issue on its head. In fact, this moment in the novel very nearly feels like Trollope simply realizing "well, it's time to wrap things up, so let's take the quickest way out of here." Were it not for Trollope's expert skill in unfolding his characters and their reactions to the events around them, it would indeed feel like a cop-out. But Trollope excellently takes his characters through even this obvious turn of events, to keep the story entertaining.

For our "B" story, we get what could be loosely called a direct sequel to SMALL HOUSE in that John Eames is still pursuing Lily Dale, and Lily is still insistent that she will remain an old maid for life. It is in this "B" story that I found the most frustration ... for starters, the man who ruined Lily in the previous novel makes a reappearance here, and were one to expect to find a goldmine of dramatic conflict, one would be disappointed, for almost as soon as he appears, he is dismissed again. Furthermore, the conclusion of Lily and John's story here is almost exactly the same as in the previous story ... so, ultimately, it is a wholly pointless part of the story. I realize my 21st century mindset cannot appreciate her the way Victorian era readers might, but I find Lily to be a most frustrating and annoying character, the more I am exposed to her.

Beyond these two plot points are a "C" and "D" story as well ... the "C" story is the token "lovers trying to overcome obstacles to get married" story that appears in so many of Trollope's work ... in this case, the son of archdeacon Grantly wishes to marry the daughter of the disgraced Crawley, and the archdeacon strongly opposes it. Par for the course, and nothing particularly compelling in it.

But it is the "D" story that robs the novel of it's shiney fifth star here ... a completely unrelated story dealing with an artist attempting to paint a portrait of a woman in hopes of using the time to convince her to marry him. In this sub-story we have also a married woman who is pining for the artist, and who's husband is close to financial ruin. This element of the novel has almost no bearing on the central plot, and feels like a simple device to pad out the novel's length in order to sell more installments to the serial publication in which it originally appeared. As it is, it could have been removed and published as a seperate short-story, and it's absence would not be felt at all.

At the bottom is an "E" story that takes up all of three chapters concerning John Eames flirtation with another young woman, who's mother is trying to help her "trap a man" in marriage. I only mention it because the final chapter in this little side-story is, in fact, one of the most amusing in the entire novel.

Trollope is not a great story-teller or plot maker ... but where he truly shines is in writing characters and scenes in which they interact ... and in this LAST CHRONICLE, we see Trollope hitting his stride in this regard. As he closed this series, he was just launching into the Palliser series, in which we find some of his best novels. All told, I did like the novel - it was a fair wrapping up of all our characters ... my only misgivings are the disappointing and seemingly pointless conclusion to the Lily Dale storyline, and the fact that one of the main characters dies off before learning the final revelation of Crawley's story, who's reaction would no doubt have been the best. Such misgivings may simply be the result of being raised in a generation that demands all stories have a point and a riveting and dramatic climax. Combined with the needless story of the artist, I can't quite call it my favorite in the series ... but I will say that it still contains some of Trollope's best writing ... particularly in the fact that he took a rather dull character from a previous novel (Crawley) and expertly turned him into one of his most fascinating characters! That alone makes it worth the read.