The Old English Baron

The Old English Baron is a Gothic novel written by Clara Reeve. It was first published in 1777 and is considered one of the early examples of the Gothic genre.

The story is set in the late 16th century and follows the tale of Sir Philip Harclay, who has been wrongly accused and imprisoned for a crime he did not commit.

Clara Reeve (1729-1807) was an English novelist best known for her gothic novel "The Old English Baron", which was published in 1777. She was also the author of an innovative history of prose fiction called The Progress of Romance, which was published in 1785. Reeve was born in Ipswich, England, and was the daughter of Reverend William Reeve and the granddaughter of William Smithies, a goldsmith and jeweler to King George I.

She was one of eight children and grew up in a family that valued education. Reeve's first work was a translation from Latin, which was an unusual language for a woman to learn at the time.