Henry Colburn (1784 – 16 August 1855) was a British publisher.

Life

Virtually nothing is known about Henry Colburn's parentage or early life, and there is uncertainty over his year of birth. He was well-educated and fluent in French and had the financial capital at a young age to enter publishing, giving credence to the hypothesis of Sadlier that he may have been the illegitimate son of an Englishman by a French mother. He is first documented as an apprentice printer indentured for six years to William Earle, a bookseller in

Albemarle Street Albemarle Street is a street in Mayfair in central London, off Piccadilly. It has historic associations with Lord Byron, whose publisher John Murray was based here, and Oscar Wilde, a member of the Albemarle Club, where an insult he received ...

, London, on 1 June 1800 for the sum of £1,000. Earle's was an established English and foreign language library. In 1806, Colburn acquired Morgan's

circulating library A circulating library (also known as lending libraries and rental libraries) lent books to subscribers, and was first and foremost a business venture. The intention was to profit from lending books to the public for a fee. Overview Circulating li ...

based in

Conduit Street Conduit Street is a street in Mayfair, London. It connects Bond Street to Regent Street. History The street was first developed in the early 18th century on the Conduit Mead Estate, which the Corporation of London had owned since the 15th centu ...

, from where he published his first books, notably works by popular light novelists translated from French and German. Most of the French novels were published in the original language by ''Chez Colburn'' and then reissued in translation''.'' A few were non fiction, as can be seen in the table. He had an early coup in publishing

Lady Caroline Lamb Lady Caroline Lamb (née Ponsonby; 13 November 1785 – 25 January 1828) was an Anglo-Irish aristocrat and novelist, best known for ''Glenarvon'', a Gothic novel. In 1812 she had an affair with Lord Byron, whom she described as "mad, bad, and ...

's roman à clef (and succès de scandale) novel ''

Glenarvon ''Glenarvon'' was Lady Caroline Lamb's first novel. It created a sensation when published on 9 May 1816. Set in the Irish rebellion of 1798, the book satirized the Whig Holland House circle, while casting a sceptical eye on left-wing politicking. ...

'' (1816), which went through four editions and sold very well.

Lady Morgan Sydney, Lady Morgan (''née'' Owenson; 25 December 1781? – 14 April 1859), was an Irish novelist, best known for '' The Wild Irish Girl'' (1806)'','' a romantic, and some critics suggest, "proto-feminist", novel with political and patriotic o ...

's ''France'' (1817) was another of his earliest successful ventures. A furious attack in the ''

Quarterly Review The ''Quarterly Review'' was a literary and political periodical founded in March 1809 by London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River ...

'' (April 1817) did more good than harm to the book. ''

'' was a harbinger of Colburn's later great innovation, the so-called "silver fork novel", a kind of

fashionable novel Fashionable novels, also called silver-fork novels, were a 19th-century genre of English literature that depicted the lives of the upper class and the aristocracy. Era The silver-fork novels dominated the English literature market from the mid-18 ...

which gave readers the thrill of peering into the lifestyles of rich and aristocratic families. At the beginning of 1824 his publishing interests were separated from the library and established in

New Burlington Street New Burlington Street (originally Little Burlington Street) is a street in central London that is on land that was once part of the Burlington Estate. The current architecture of the street bears little resemblance to the original design of the ...

. In 1830 Colburn took his printer,

Richard Bentley Richard Bentley FRS (; 27 January 1662 – 14 July 1742) was an English classical scholar, critic, and theologian. Considered the "founder of historical philology", Bentley is widely credited with establishing the English school of Hellen ...

into a partnership, which was dissolved in August 1832. Having first set up business again at Windsor for a short time, Colburn paid a forfeiture for breaking the covenant not to commence publishing within twenty miles of London, and opened a house in

Great Marlborough Street Great Marlborough Street is a thoroughfare in Soho, Central London. It runs east of Regent Street past Carnaby Street towards Noel Street. Originally part of the Millfield estate south of Tyburn Road (now Oxford Street), the street was named ...

. He finally retired from business in favour of Messrs. Hurst & Blackett, but kept his name attached to a few books. These were

Elliot Warburton Bartholomew Eliot George Warburton (1810–1852), usually known as Eliot Warburton, was an Irish traveller and novelist, born near Tullamore, Ireland. Biography His father was Major George Warburton, Inspector General of the Royal Irish Cons ...

's ''Crescent and the Cross'', the ''Diaries'' of Evelyn and Pepys, Agnes Strickland's ''Lives'', ''

Burke's Peerage Burke's Peerage Limited is a British genealogical publisher founded in 1826, when the Irish genealogist John Burke began releasing books devoted to the ancestry and heraldry of the peerage, baronetage, knightage and landed gentry of Great Br ...

'' and some more. Their copyrights went to auction at Southgate & Barrett on 26 May 1857, and produced about £14,000. Colburn amassed a considerable fortune, his property being sworn as under £35,000.

Periodicals

With the support of

Frederic Shoberl Frederic Shoberl (1775–1853), also known as Frederick Schoberl, was an English journalist, editor, translator, writer and illustrator. Shoberl edited ''Forget-Me-Not'', the first literary annual, issued at Christmas "for 1823" and translated '' ...

, Colburn started in 1814 '' New Monthly Magazine, and Universal Register'', a rival to the old ''

Monthly Magazine ''The Monthly Magazine'' (1796–1843) of London began publication in February 1796. Contributors Richard Phillips was the publisher and a contributor on political issues. The editor for the first ten years was a literary jack-of-all-trades, Dr ...

'' of

Sir Richard Phillips Sir Richard Phillips (13 December 1767 – 2 April 1840) was an English schoolteacher, author, publisher and vegetarianism activist. Life Phillips was born in London. Following some political difficulties in Leicester where he was a schoolte ...

. John Watkins and

Alaric Alexander Watts Alaric Alexander Watts (16 March 1797 – 5 April 1864) was a British poet and journalist, born in London. His life was dedicated to newspaper creation and editing, and he was seen as a conservative writer. It led him to bankruptcy, when a p ...

were among the early editors. A new series began in 1820 under the care of

Thomas Campbell Thomas Campbell may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Thomas Campbell (poet) (1777–1844), Scottish poet * Thomas Campbell (sculptor) (1790–1858), Scottish sculptor * Thomas Campbell (visual artist) (born 1969), California-based visual artist ...

. Bulwer Lytton (1832),

Theodore Hook Theodore Edward Hook (22 September 1788 – 24 August 1841) was an English man of letters and composer and briefly a civil servant in Mauritius. He is best known for his practical jokes, particularly the Berners Street hoax in 1809. The wo ...

, and

Harrison Ainsworth William Harrison Ainsworth (4 February 18053 January 1882) was an English historical novelist born at King Street in Manchester. He trained as a lawyer, but the legal profession held no attraction for him. While completing his legal studies in ...

(3rd ser., 1836) successively were editors. The magazine lasted to 1875. On 25 January 1817, Colburn brought out the first number of the ''

Literary Gazette ''The Literary Gazette'' was a British literary magazine, established in London in 1817 with its full title being ''The Literary Gazette, and Journal of Belles Lettres, Arts, Sciences''. Sometimes it appeared with the caption title, "London Lite ...

'', priced at one shilling. It was the earliest weekly newspaper devoted to literature, science, and the arts which obtained reputation and authority. Initially Hannibal Evans Lloyd, and Thomasina Ross who had worked with Lloyd before, appear to have been joint editors. The department of fine arts was under the care of

William Paulet Carey William Paulet Carey (1759 – 21 May 1839) was an Irish art critic and publicist, known also as an engraver and dealer. In 1792 he joined the Society of United Irishmen in Dublin, but feeling unsupported as he himself faced charges of sedition, ...

. After the twenty-sixth number (19 July 1817)

William Jerdan William Jerdan FSA (16 April 1782 – 11 July 1869), Scottish journalist, was born at Kelso, Scotland. During the years between 1799 and 1806, he spent short periods in a country lawyer's office, a London West India merchant's counting hou ...

purchased a third share of the property and became sole editor. Messrs. Longman also purchased a third, and the periodical was rapidly successful. In 1842,

became sole proprietor. The ''Gazette'' was incorporated with the ''Parthenon'' in 1862. On 31 December 1827, Colburn wrote to Jerdan that he had joined the new literary journal, the ''

Athenaeum Athenaeum may refer to: Books and periodicals * ''Athenaeum'' (German magazine), a journal of German Romanticism, established 1798 * ''Athenaeum'' (British magazine), a weekly London literary magazine 1828–1921 * ''The Athenaeum'' (Acadia U ...

,'' "in consequence of the injustice done to my authors generally" by the ''Gazette''. In 1828, he founded the ''Court Journal''; in the following year he brought out the '' United Service Magazine and Naval and Military Journal''; and he had some interest in the ''

Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

''. A biography of

David Lester Richardson David Lester Richardson (1801 – 17 November 1865) was an officer of the East India Company, who throughout his life followed literary pursuits as a poet and periodical writer, and as editor and proprietor of literary journals. A skilled lingu ...

recounts the background to Colburn's ''Court Journal''. Richardson established the ''London Weekly Review'' in 1827, but was compelled to give it up in 1828; he entered into an agreement under which Colburn would assume control of the journal in return for Richardson receiving a share in the profits of sales of the ''London Weekly Review''. Colburn ingeniously renamed the publication as the ''Court Journal'', and Richardson's anticipated rewards evaporated.

Books

After the successes of Lady Caroline Lamb's ''

'' (1816) and Lady Morgan's ''France'' (1817), Colburn, at the suggestion of

William Upcott William Upcott (1779–1845) was an English librarian and antiquary. Life Born in Oxfordshire, he was the illegitimate son of Ozias Humphry by Delly Wickens, daughter of an Oxford shopkeeper, called Upcott from the maiden name of Humphry's mothe ...

, brought out the first edition of ''

John Evelyn's Diary The ''Diary'' of John Evelyn (31 October 1620 – 27 February 1706), a gentlemanly Royalist and ''virtuoso'' of the seventeenth century, was first published in 1818 (2nd edition, 1819) under the title ''Memoirs Illustrative of the Life and Writing ...

'' in 1818. It was followed by his publication of ''

Pepys's Diary Samuel Pepys (; 23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English diarist and naval administrator. He served as administrator of the Royal Navy and Member of Parliament and is most famous for the diary he kept for a decade. Pepys had no mariti ...

'' in 1825. At the height of Theodore Hook's headlong London career, Colburn offered him £600. for a novel, and ''Sayings and Doings'' (1824) was the result. Six thousand copies of the three volumes are said to have been sold. In 1827 he published Thomas Skinner Sturr's anonymous ''Richmond, or stories in the life of a Bow Street officer'', the earliest collection of detective stories. In 1826, Colburn published ''The Posthumous Works of

Anne Radcliffe Ann Radcliffe (née Ward; 9 July 1764 – 7 February 1823) was an English novelist and a pioneer of Gothic fiction. Her technique of explaining apparently supernatural elements in her novels has been credited with gaining respectability for G ...

'', featuring '' Gaston de Blondeville,'' and ''A Memoir of The Authoress'', the first known biographical work on Mrs. Radcliffe. Colburn was a major purveyor of the

mode of social fiction called "Silver Fork" after a phrase coined by

William Hazlitt William Hazlitt (10 April 177818 September 1830) was an English essayist, drama and literary critic, painter, social commentator, and philosopher. He is now considered one of the greatest critics and essayists in the history of the English lan ...

. The series of ''Colburn's Modern Standard Novelists'' (1835–41, 19 vols.), containing works by

, Bulwer Lytton,

and

Robert Plumer Ward Robert Ward, or from 1828 Robert Plumer Ward (19 March 1765 – 13 August 1846), was an English barrister, politician, and novelist. George Canning said that his law books were as pleasant as novels, and his novels as dull as law books. Life He ...

, Horace Smith,

Marryat Marryat or Marryatt is a surname. It may refer to: Marryat *Augusta Marryat (c. 1828–1899), British children's writer and illustrator *Charles Marryat (1827–1906), Dean of Adelaide from 1887 to 1906 *Emilia Marryat (1835–1875), English author ...

Thomas Henry Lister Thomas Henry Lister (1800 – 5 June 1842) was an English novelist and biographer, and served as Registrar General in the British civil service. He was an early exponent of the silver fork novel as a genre and also presaged "futuristic" writing i ...

, G. P. R. James, and George Robert Gleig. Colburn also numbered among "my authors"

Disraeli Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield, (21 December 1804 – 19 April 1881) was a British statesman and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He played a centr ...

John Banim John Banim (3 April 1798 – 30 August 1842), was an Irish novelist, short story writer, dramatist, poet and essayist, sometimes called the "Scott of Ireland." He also studied art, working as a painter of miniatures and portraits, and as a drawin ...

, and fashionable novelists of the day. Colburn's book series, ''The Naval and Military Library of Entertainment: A Series of Works from the Pens of Distinguished Officers. Now First Collected'' (1834, 20 vols.), contained works by

, Gleig and other lesser known authors on nonfiction subjects, including travel and memoirs, and military-related fiction, "particularly suited to the taste and pursuits of the members" of the Army and Navy.Publisher's advertisement
in: ''The London Literary Gazette and Journal of Belles Lettres, Arts, Sciences, etc.'', No. 881, 17 December 1833, p. 784. Retrieved 18 April 2021.

Family

He was twice married, the second time to Eliza Anne, only daughter of Captain Crosbie, who survived him. He died at his house in Bryanston Square on 16 August 1855. He was buried in

Kensal Green Cemetery Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in the Kensal Green area of Queens Park in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, England. Inspired by Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, it was founded by the barrister George Frederic ...

References

;Attribution

Sources

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Colburn, Henry 1780s births 1855 deaths English printers Burials at Kensal Green Cemetery Publishers (people) from London 19th-century British businesspeople