Charles Mills (1788–1826) was an English historian. His works include ''

History of the Crusades for the Recovery and Possession of the Holy Land ''The History of the Crusades for the Recovery and Possession of the Holy Land'' was a two-volume work published in 1820 by Charles Mills.Mills, C. (1822)The history of the crusades for the recovery and possession of the Holy Land 3d ed. London. ...

'', ''

History of Mohammedanism ''History of Mohammedanism'' is a work by Charles Mills. This 19th-century book presents a biography of the prophet of Islam, and accounts of the empires founded by Muslims; an inquiry into the theological, moral, and judicial codes of the Isla ...

'' and ''History of Chivalry''. Charles Mills after Sievier bust

Life

Born on 29 July 1788 at Croom's Hill,

Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...

, he was youngest son of Samuel Gillam Mills, a surgeon. He was educated privately, and, after a brief experience in a merchant's counting-house, was articled in 1804 to a firm of

solicitor A solicitor is a legal practitioner who traditionally deals with most of the legal matters in some jurisdictions. A person must have legally-defined qualifications, which vary from one jurisdiction to another, to be described as a solicitor and ...

s. In 1810 he placed himself for a year's study in conveyancing under James Humphreys. Lung disease compelled Mills to winter in

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...

in 1814–15. On inheriting a moderate fortune, he abandoned the law to write. He died of a recurrence of his old complaint at

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

on 9 October 1826, unmarried. A few months before his death he was elected one of the knights of the British Order of Saint John, in recognition of his ''History of the Crusades''. Mills's friend Augustine Skottowe published a ''Memoir'' (1828). Another friend was

William Frederick Deacon William Frederick Deacon (1799–1845) was an English author and journalist. William Frederick Deacon was the first child of six born to a fairly prosperous merchant of Tavistock Square, London. After attending Reading School, where his conte ...

, who dedicated his ''Innkeeper's Album'' (1823) to Mills.

Works

Mills was a follower of

Edward Gibbon Edward Gibbon (; 8 May 173716 January 1794) was an English historian, writer, and member of parliament. His most important work, ''The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'', published in six volumes between 1776 and 1788, is k ...

. His first work, ''An History of Muhammedanism'' (London, 1817, 2nd edit. 1818), had been seen in manuscript by

Sir John Malcolm Major-General Sir John Malcolm GCB, KLS (2 May 1769 – 30 May 1833) was a Scottish soldier, diplomat, East India Company administrator, statesman, and historian. Early life Sir John Malcolm was born in 1769, one of seventeen children of Geor ...

, who supported its publication, and in the revision by loans from his own library. It was translated into French by Germain Buisson, Guernsey, 1826. His next book ''The History of the Crusades'', 2 vols. London, 1820 (4th edit. 1828), bears fewer signs of the influence of Gibbon, and was praised by

Sir Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels '' Ivanhoe'', '' Rob Roy' ...

, who assisted him with notes from Scottish chronicles. In turn, Scott used Mills' ''History of the Crusades'' as a source when writing his historical novel, ''

The Talisman A talisman is an object which is purported to possess certain magical properties. Talisman may also refer to: Art and entertainment Fictional characters * Talisman (comics), a superhero from Marvel Comics who was a member of Alpha Flight * Tali ...

''. Irwin, Robert, "Saladin and the Third Crusade: A Case Study in Historiography and the Historical Novel". In Bentley, Michael, ''Companion to Historiography''. London. Routledge, 2007 (pgs. 140-142) An imitation of the ''Travels of Anacharsis'' of

Jean-Jacques Barthélemy Jean-Jacques Barthélemy (20 January 1716 – 30 April 1795) was a French scholar who became the first person to decipher an extinct language. He deciphered the Palmyrene alphabet in 1754 and the Phoenician alphabet in 1758. Early years Barth� ...

, entitled ''The Travels of Theodore Ducas of Candia in Various Countries in Europe at the Revival of Letters and Art'', 2 vols. London, 1822, followed. It proved unsuccessful, and only the first part ''Italy'' appeared. Mills's last book was ''The History of Chivalry, or Knighthood and its Times'',’ 2 vols. London, 1825 (2nd edit. 1826). Mills's collected works were translated into French by Paul Tiby (7 vols. Paris, 1825).

Notes

;Attribution

External links

The Firanj Are Coming— Again
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mills, Charles 1788 births 1826 deaths British historians Historians of the Crusades