he lived for some time in Farnham, Surrey. In July 1850 he left England and travelled to New York, where he rented Charles Astor Bristed's house at Hell Gate. In 1851 he took a house at Stockbridge, Massachusetts, where he later bought property and made some efforts at farming. In 1852 he was appointed British Consul at Norfolk, Virginia. In 1856 the Consulate was moved to Richmond. His novels Ticonderoga and The Old Dominion, written at this time, were set in the United States. In 1858 he was transferred to Venice, Italy, partly due to failing health, where he was appointed Consul General. In April 1860, he became seriously ill. He died in June 1860 from a stroke. He was buried in the cemetery at Isola di San Michele. The epitaph on his grave stone was written by his friend Walter Savage Landor. The epitaph reads:"George Payne Rainsford James.British Consul General in the Adriatic.Died in Venice on the 9th day of June, 1860.His merits as a writer are known wherever the English language is, and as a man they rest on the hearts of many.A few friends have erected this humble and perishable monument." Works At an early age he began to write romances, and continued his production with such industry that his works reach to 100 volumes. For 30 years hardly a year went by that he failed to turn out at least one novel, and usually two or more, most of them "three-deckers" (three-volume). Describing himself as a follower of Sir Walter Scott, he may have produced more sheer verbiage than his mentor, chiefly historical fiction (61 titles in 158 volumes). This excessive production was fatal to his permanent reputation; but his books had considerable immediate popularity. Their titles are: Novels: Adra, or The Peruvians (1829) Richelieu: A Tale of France (3 volumes, 1829) Darnley, or, The Field of the Cloth of Gold (3 volumes, 1830) De l'Orme (3 volumes, 1830) Philip Augustus, or The Brothers in Arms (3 volumes, 1831) Bertrand de la Croix, or The Siege of Rhodes (series 1831, book 1841) Henry Masterton, or The Adventures of a Young Cavalier (3 volumes, 1832) The String of Pearls (2 volumes, 1832) Delaware, or The Ruined Family (3 volumes, 1833) Mary of Burgundy, or The Revolt of Ghent (3 volumes, 1833) The Life and Adventures of John Marston Hall (3 volumes, 1834) The Desultory Man (3 volumes,