Ouida

Marie Louise de la Ramée
Photograph by Adolphe Beau, c. 1867–1871
Born	Maria Louise Ramé (1839-01-01)1 January 1839 Bury St Edmunds, England
Died	25 January 1908(1908-01-25) (aged 69) Viareggio, Italy
Pen name	Ouida
Occupation	Novelist
Nationality	English-French
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Maria Louise Ramé (1 January 1839^[1] – 25 January 1908), going by the name Marie Louise de la Ramée and known by the pseudonym Ouida (/ˈwiːdə/ WEE-də), was an English novelist. Ouida wrote more than 40 novels, as well as short stories, children's books and essays. Moderately successful, she lived a life of luxury, entertaining many of the literary figures of the day.

Under Two Flags (1867), one of her most famous novels, described the British in Algeria. It expressed sympathy for the French colonists – with whom Ouida deeply identified – and, to some extent, the Arabs. The novel was adapted for the stage, and was filmed six times. Her 1872 novel A Dog of Flanders is considered a children's classic in much of Asia.^[2] The American author Jack London cited her novel Signa as one of the reasons for his literary success. Her lavish lifestyle eventually led her to penury, and her works were put up for auction to pay her debts. She died in Italy from pneumonia. Soon after her death, her friends organized a public subscription in Bury St Edmunds, her birthplace, where they had a fountain for horses and dogs installed in her name.