Washington Irving Article

Washington Irving summary

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Washington Irving, (born April 3, 1783, New York, N.Y., U.S.—died Nov. 28, 1859, Tarrytown, N.Y.), U.S. author, called the “first American man of letters.” He began his career as a lawyer but soon became a leader of the group that published Salmagundi (1807–08), a periodical containing whimsical essays and poems. After his comic A History of New York…by Diedrich Knickerbocker (1809), he wrote little until his very successful The Sketch Book (1819–20), containing his best-known stories, “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” and “Rip Van Winkle.” It was followed by a sequel, Bracebridge Hall (1822). He held diplomatic positions in Madrid, Spain, and writings such as The Alhambra (1832) reflect his interest in Spain’s past.