Background
Ethnicity:
Walter Pater was born on August 4, 1839 to Richard Glode Pater and Maria Hill in Shadwell, East London. His father was a physician and Walter was the second of four children, his siblings were William Thompson (1835-1887), Hester Maria (1837-1922), and Clara Ann (1841-1910). Richard Pater died on January 28, 1842 and the family moved to Chase Side, Enfield. Pater attended Enfield Grammar school until 1853 when he enrolled at King's School Cantebury. In 1858 Walter entered Queen's College, Oxford as a commoner with an exhibition (worth sixty pounds a year for three years) from King's College Cantebury. Maria Pater had died on February 25, 1854. At Oxford Pater read classics and was influenced by Ruskin. In 1859 he spent his vaction in Germany, returning to Oxford in October. In early 1861 Pater prepared a weekly paper for Benjamin Jowett, professor of Greek (later master of Balliol). By 1862 Pater had graduated with a BA (second class honours) in Literae Humaniores, he subsequently remained in Oxford to study with private pupils (Charles Lancelot Shadwell who later became fellow andd provost of Oriel was one). On December 28, 1862, Walter's aunt Hester E. M. Pater (Aunty Bessy) died. She had taken his sisters with her to Heidelberg to complete their education and Walter had spent Christmas with them in 1858. Pater was elected to Old Mortality, an essay society in Oxford and on February 5, 1864 he was chosen as a probationary fellow of Brasenose College where he lived, taught and wrote for the most of his life.Pater spent 1864 in Paris with his sisters and journeyed to Italy with Shadwell in 1865, stopping at Ravenna, Pisa and Florence. In 1867, Pater became a lecturer at Brasenose. He left London in August for about five weeks to travel abroad, by 1869 he had settled with his sisters (Hester and Clara) in a house on Bradmore Road in Oxford. In 1876, three years after the first publication of The Renaissance, Pater was caricatured as the Decadent "Mr. Rose" in W. H. Mallock's satire The New Republic. In 1878 he lectured at Oxford on classical archeology, perhaps the first time the subject was taught at the college. In 1882 he went to Italy again, this time visiting Rome. In 1883 he resigned his post at Brasenose and in 1885 he moved with his siters to 12 Earl's Terrace Kensington, London, though he lived at Oxford during the academic term. In 1893 he moved back to Oxford, where he lived at 64 St. Giles until his death on July 30, 1894.
Born in Stepney in London's East End, Walter Pater was the second son of Richard Glode Pater, a physician who had moved to London in the early 19th century to practice medicine among the poor. Dr Pater died while Walter was an infant and the family moved to Enfield, London. Walter attended Enfield Grammar School and was individually tutored by the headmaster.