Julian Sturgis

Julian Russell Sturgis (21 October 1848 – 13 April 1904) was a novelist, poet, librettist and lyricist. Born in the US, he lived and worked in Britain nearly all his life and took British citizenship.

Educated at Eton and Balliol College, Oxford, Sturgis was a notable athlete. He distinguished himself in Eton's sporting activities and rowed for Balliol for three years. He then played association football as an amateur, from 1872 to 1876, and was the first foreigner to play in an FA Cup Final.

Sturgis qualified as a barrister, but he embarked on a writing career in 1874, producing novels, poetry, plays and libretti. He wrote the words for four operas, with music by Arthur Goring Thomas, Arthur Sullivan, Alexander Mackenzie and Charles Villiers Stanford, respectively. He is, perhaps, best remembered as the librettist for Sullivan's 1891 opera Ivanhoe.

Sturgis was born in Boston, Massachusetts, the fourth son of merchant and lawyer Russell Sturgis and his third wife, Julia Overing née Boit (1820–1888). His great-grandfather was another Russell Sturgis, and his older half-brother was John Hubbard Sturgis. When Julian was seven months old, the family moved to England, where Russell Sturgis joined Baring Brothers in London. The writer Howard Sturgis was Julian's younger brother. Sturgis attended Eton from 1862 to 1867, where he played an active role in the mixed Wall and Field XI games in 1867, serving as Keeper of the Field in 1867. He also edited the Eton College Journal and was chairman of Pop. On leaving Eton, he went to Balliol College, Oxford, where he rowed for three years for the college.

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