Christina Rossetti was born in London on December 5 1830, the fourth and last child of Gabriele Rossetti (1783-1854) and Frances Mary Lavinia Polidori Rossetti (1800-1886). Her older sister, Maria Francesca Rossetti (1827-1876), became an Anglican nun. Her oldest brother, Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828-1882), became an acclaimed Pre-Raphaelite poet and painter. Her other brother, WIlliam Michael Rossetti (1829-1919), was an art critic and writer.