Henry Giles (1 November 1809 – 10 July 1882) was a Unitarian minister and writer.

Biography

Born in

County Wexford County Wexford ( ga, Contae Loch Garman) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Southern Region. Named after the town of Wexford, it was based on the historic Gaelic territory of Hy Kinsella (''Uí Ceinns ...

to a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

family, Giles changed his religious belief several times, becoming a

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

and a

Dissenter A dissenter (from the Latin ''dissentire'', "to disagree") is one who dissents (disagrees) in matters of opinion, belief, etc. Usage in Christianity Dissent from the Anglican church In the social and religious history of England and Wales, and ...

,A. Judson Rich, "Henry Giles" in Joseph Henry Allen, ed., ''The Unitarian review'' (1891), p. 276-285. He studied for a time at the

Royal Academical Institution of Belfast The Royal Belfast Academical Institution is an independent grammar school in Belfast, Northern Ireland. With the support of Belfast's leading reformers and democrats, it opened its doors in 1814. Until 1849, when it was superseded by what today is ...

. before finally becoming a Unitarian and officiating as a minister of that denomination in

Greenock, Scotland Greenock (; sco, Greenock; gd, Grianaig, ) is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in Scotland, United Kingdom and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of ...

and chapel of Toxteth Park, in the edge of

Liverpool, England Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

.Justin McCarthy, ed., ''Irish Literature'' (1904), p. 1280. It was during his three years preaching in Liverpool that Giles gained a reputation as a preacher of marked oratorical power. In "the Liverpool Controversy," - an extended debate held in 1839 between thirteen clergymen of the Established Church on one hand, and Giles, along with

James Martineau James Martineau (; 21 April 1805 – 11 January 1900) was a British religious philosopher influential in the history of Unitarianism. For 45 years he was Professor of Mental and Moral Philosophy and Political Economy in Manchester New College ( ...

and

John Hamilton Thom John Hamilton Thom (10 January 1808 – 2 September 1894) was an Irish Christian Unitarianism, Unitarian minister. Life He was a younger son of John Thom (died 1808), born on 10 January 1808 at Newry, County Down, where his father, a native of Lan ...

defending the Unitarian position on the other hand. Giles spoke on the topics "God and Christ," "Man," "Creeds" and "Future Retribution." A record of the debate was published under the name ''Unitarianism Defended''. In 1840, Giles moved to the United States, where he preached, lectured extensively, and wrote. He was widely known as a lecturer,George Willis Cooke, ''Unitarianism in America: A History of Its Origin and Development'' (1902), p. 420. and his numerous volumes of literary interpretation and criticism were well-received, particularly his ''Human Life in Shakespeare''. Other works included ''Lectures and Essays'' (2 vols. 1845), ''Christian Thoughts on Life'' (1850), and ''Illustrations of Genius in Some of its Applications to Society and Culture''. He was married in 1849, in

Bangor, Maine Bangor ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat of Penobscot County. The city proper has a population of 31,753, making it the state's 3rd-largest settlement, behind Portland (68,408) and Lewiston (37,121). Modern Bangor ...

, to Louise Lord, of

Bucksport, Maine Bucksport is a historical town in Hancock County, Maine, United States. The population was 4,944 at the 2020 census. Bucksport is across the Penobscot River estuary from Fort Knox and the Penobscot Narrows Bridge, which replaced the Waldo–H ...

, with whom he had two daughters, and a son. One daughter, Nora, was drowned off Bucksport in 1869, at the age of 18, in a sailing accident.''New York Times'', 7 July 1869, p, 1 Giles was plagued by a variety of health issues. He had a hunchbacked, dwarfish stature which he claimed resulted from a nurse having let him fall as an infant, injuring his spine. Throughout his life, he struggled with alcoholism; although he initially found strong drink distasteful, he became acclimated to liquor when it was prescribed to him to counter an illness. His public life came to an abrupt halt around 1865, when he suffered a sudden paralytic attack while lecturing in Boston. He lived for 17 years thereafter, and died in

Quincy, Massachusetts Quincy ( ) is a coastal U.S. city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the largest city in the county and a part of Greater Boston, Metropolitan Boston as one of Boston's immediate southern suburbs. Its population in 2020 was 1 ...

. He was an avid reader and was proficient in both French and German.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Giles, Henry 1809 births 1882 deaths Irish Unitarians Christian clergy from County Wexford 19th-century Unitarian clergy Irish non-subscribing Presbyterian ministers