Charitie Lees Smith (later, Charitie Lees Bancroft; still later Charitie de Cheney or Charitie de Chenez;
pen name, C.L.S.
21 June 1841 – 20 June 1923) was an
Anglican Irish American hymnwriter. Her hymns, well known in England and Ireland, were included in ''Lyra Sacra Hibernica'', ''Ryle's Spiritual Songs'', ''Lyra Britannica'', and ''Times of Refreshing''. Additionally, she wrote various religious pieces for periodicals.
Early years
Charitie Lees Smith was born on 21 June 1841, at Bloomfield, Merrion,
County Dublin
"Action to match our speech"
, image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Dublin.svg
, map_alt = map showing County Dublin as a small area of darker green on the east coast within the lighter green background of ...
, the fourth child of Rev. Dr. George Sidney Smith and Charlotte Lees. The Rev. Smith was the minister of Colebrooke, in the
Church of Ireland
The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the secon ...
parish of
Aghalurcher
Aghalurcher is a civil parish located mainly in the barony of Magherastephana in County Fermanagh and partly in the barony of Clogher in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland.
Townlands of Aghalurcher in County Fermanagh
The parish comprises the f ...
from 1838–1867 and, during this period, the family lived in Ardunshin House near
Brookeborough,
County Fermanagh
County Fermanagh ( ; ) is one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the six counties of Northern Ireland.
The county covers an area of 1,691 km2 (653 sq mi) and has a population of 61,805 ...
, Ireland. Her father was also at some point Rector of
Drumragh, County Tyrone
Drumragh is a civil parish and townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, on the right bank of the River Drumragh. Today, it is within the county town of Omagh. It has a Roman Catholic church; and a Church of Ireland
The Church of Irela ...
.
Her talent for poetic composition was developed at an early period of her life.
Career
In 1860, one of Smith's first compositions ''O for the robes of whiteness'' appeared in leaflet form in the immediate aftermath of the Irish
1859 revival. In 1863, she wrote perhaps her best known hymn "Before the Throne of God Above" which she entitled ''The Advocate'' (a hymn which was revived in evangelical circles in the late 20th century). In 1867, Smith's father took the family to Tattyreagh,
Omagh
Omagh (; from ga, An Ómaigh , meaning 'the virgin plain') is the county town of County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is situated where the rivers Drumragh and Camowen meet to form the Strule. Northern Ireland's capital city Belfast is 68 m ...
,
County Tyrone
County Tyrone (; ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland. It is no longer used as an administrative division for local government but retai ...
, when he became the rector of St Columba's Church. Smith continued with her compositions, publishing them in a volume entitled ''Within the Veil'' in 1867.
She wrote considerably for several serial publications and contributed hymns to
J. C. Ryle's ''Spiritual Songs'', ''Times of Refreshing'', and the ''Lyra Britannica'' (1866) of
Charles Rogers. Her hymn, "Christ Mighty to Save," was included in the latter publication, while "Heavenly Anticipations" was a favorite in
Sunday schools. "Mighty to Save" first appeared in 1867 in the ''Lyra Britannica'', its form being seven stanzas of eight lines each, but it was considerably abbreviated to fit it for common use, including a
cento
The Middle East Treaty Organization (METO), also known as the Baghdad Pact and subsequently known as the Central Treaty Organization (CENTO), was a military alliance of the Cold War. It was formed in 24 February 1955 by Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Tur ...
beginning with the third verse. "Aspirations" was written in the flush and fervor of coming "out of darkness into marvellous light" during the awakenings of 1859-60 in Ireland.
Personal life
In 1869, Smith married a
Liverpudlian
Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...
, Arthur E. Bancroft, in
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
, Scotland. Records of her married life are scarce but it seems she was widowed twice. She died on 20 June 1923, the day before her 82nd birthday, in
Oakland,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
(aged 81), bearing the surname de Cheney, or de Chenez.
References
Attribution
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Bibliography
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Further reading
* Strahan, Jack (2002) ''More Hymns and Their Writers'' Glasgow, GTP.
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Lees Charitie
1841 births
1923 deaths
19th-century Irish writers
19th-century Irish women writers
People from County Dublin
Irish Anglican hymnwriters
Irish emigrants to the United States (before 1923)
American Episcopalians
Irish Anglicans
Christian hymnwriters
Pseudonymous women writers
Irish religious writers
Women religious writers
19th-century pseudonymous writers