1842‒1852

Abstract

Three of Arthur Sullivan’s grandparents were Irish and probably Roman Catholic. This chapter explores his ancestry and the Irish and Roman Catholic influences on his character, his faith, and his music. It considers and dismisses the suggestions made during his lifetime that he had Jewish and negroid antecedents. It covers his childhood in Sandhurst, where his father was military bandmaster, the influence of the parish church there, his early schooling, and his entrance into the Chapel Royal as a chorister.