Shelleys

The Shelleys are the plural form of the English surname Shelley and are used to refer to people who bear that name. The term is especially associated with the English Romantic literary family centered on the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley and his wife, Mary Shelley, a prominent novelist. They and their circle of friends, which included figures such as Lord Byron, had a lasting influence on early 19th‑century literature.

Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792–1822) was an English Romantic poet known for works such as Ozymandias and To a Skylark, and for his radical political and philosophical views. Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (1797–1851) was an English novelist best known for Frankenstein; she married Percy in 1816 and edited or published many of his works after his death.

Beyond these figures, the surname Shelley has a long history in English society, with the family once prominent in the gentry in Sussex. In modern usage, the surname remains common in English-speaking countries, and the Shelleys may refer collectively to people with the Shelley surname in biographical or historical contexts.