Anthony Hope

Anthony Hope was an English novelist best known for The Prisoner of Zenda and its sequel Rupert of Hentzau, swashbuckling adventures that founded the 'Ruritanian romance' — tales of intrigue and derring-do set in imaginary little kingdoms.

Sir Anthony Hope Hawkins, who wrote as Anthony Hope, was a barrister who turned to writing and achieved lasting fame with The Prisoner of Zenda (1894), a fast-paced tale of royal impersonation, court intrigue, and forbidden love set in the invented kingdom of Ruritania.

The novel’s enormous popularity gave rise to a whole genre — the “Ruritanian romance” — and its name entered the language as a term for any fictional small European kingdom used as a setting for romantic adventure. Hope continued the story in the equally admired sequel Rupert of Hentzau and wrote many other novels, though none matched the success of his Ruritanian tales.

Hope’s gift for brisk, entertaining adventure storytelling, charming heroes, and memorable villains made The Prisoner of Zenda a beloved classic that has been adapted for stage and screen many times and continues to delight readers.