Richard Gordon Heath Holmes, OBE,

FRSL The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820, by George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV, to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, th ...

, FBA (born 5 November 1945) is a British author and academic best known for his biographical studies of major figures of

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

and French

Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...

Biography

Richard Gordon Heath Holmes was born on 5 November 1945 in London. He was educated at

Downside School Downside School is a co-educational Catholic independent boarding and day school in the English public school tradition for pupils aged 11 to 18. It is located between Bath, Frome, Wells and Bruton, and is attached to Downside Abbey. Originall ...

, Somerset, and

Churchill College, Cambridge Churchill College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. It has a primary focus on science, engineering and technology, but still retains a strong interest in the arts and humanities. In 1958, a trust was establish ...

. He is a fellow of

The Royal Society of Literature The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820, by King George IV, to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, the RSL has about 600 Fellows, elec ...

and a Fellow of the

British Academy The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the same year. It is now a fellowship of more than 1,000 leading scholars span ...

. He was professor of Biographical Studies at the

University of East Anglia The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and 26 schools of study. The annual income of the institution f ...

from 2001 to 2007 and has honorary doctorates from the

University of East London , mottoeng = Knowledge and the fulfilment of vows , established = 1898 – West Ham Technical Institute1952 – West Ham College of Technology1970 – North East London Polytechnic1989 – Polytechnic of East London ...

University of Kingston Kingston University London is a Public university, public research university located within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, in South London, South West London, England. Its roots go back to the Kingston Technical Institute, founded in 1 ...

, and the

Tavistock Institute The Tavistock Institute of Human Relations is a British not-for-profit organisation that applies social science to contemporary issues and problems. It was initiated in 1946, when it developed from the Tavistock Clinic, and was formally establ ...

. In the

1992 Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours are announced on or around the date of the Queen's Official Birthday in the Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. The dates vary, both from year to year and from country to country. All are published i ...

, he was appointed an

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(OBE). He lives in London and

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

with his wife, British novelist

Rose Tremain Dame Rose Tremain (born 2 August 1943) is an English novelist, short story writer, and former Chancellor of the University of East Anglia. Life Rose Tremain was born Rosemary Jane Thomson on 2 August 1943 in London to Viola Mabel Thomson and ...

Literary biography

Holmes's major works of Romantic biography include: ''Shelley: The Pursuit'' which won him the

Somerset Maugham Award The Somerset Maugham Award is a British literary prize given each year by the Society of Authors. Set up by William Somerset Maugham in 1947 the awards enable young writers to enrich their work by gaining experience in foreign countries. The awa ...

in 1974; ''Coleridge: Early Visions'', which won him the 1989 Whitbread Book of the Year Prize (now the

Costa Book Awards The Costa Book Awards were a set of annual literary awards recognising English-language books by writers based in UK and Ireland. Originally named the Whitbread Book Awards from 1971 to 2005 after its first sponsor, the Whitbread company, then ...

); ''Coleridge: Darker Reflections'', the second and final volume of his

Coleridge Samuel Taylor Coleridge (; 21 October 177225 July 1834) was an English poet, literary critic, philosopher, and theologian who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake Poe ...

biography which won the

Duff Cooper Prize The Duff Cooper Prize is a literary prize awarded annually for the best work of history, biography, political science or occasionally poetry, published in English or French. The prize was established in honour of Duff Cooper, a British diplomat, C ...

and the

Heinemann Award The W. H. Heinemann Award is an award established by William Heinemann who bequeathed funds to the Royal Society of Literature to establish a literary prize, given from 1945 to 2003.Directory of Grants in the Humanities The Heinemann Award is give ...

; and ''Dr. Johnson and Mr. Savage'', concerning the friendship between eighteenth-century British literary figures

Samuel Johnson Samuel Johnson (18 September 1709 – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer. The ''Oxford ...

and Richard Savage, which won the

James Tait Black Prize The James Tait Black Memorial Prizes are literary prizes awarded for literature written in the English language. They, along with the Hawthornden Prize, are Britain's oldest literary awards. Based at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, Unit ...

. Holmes is also the author of two studies of European biography. '' Footsteps: Adventures of a Romantic Biographer'' is a highly acclaimed volume of memoirs and personal reflections on the biographer's art and '' Sidetracks: Explorations of a Romantic Biographer'' collects his shorter pieces, including an early, groundbreaking essay on

Thomas Chatterton Thomas Chatterton (20 November 1752 – 24 August 1770) was an English poet whose precocious talents ended in suicide at age 17. He was an influence on Romantic artists of the period such as Shelley, Keats, Wordsworth and Coleridge. Althoug ...

and an introductory account of the lives and works of

Mary Wollstonecraft Mary Wollstonecraft (, ; 27 April 1759 – 10 September 1797) was a British writer, philosopher, and advocate of women's rights. Until the late 20th century, Wollstonecraft's life, which encompassed several unconventional personal relationsh ...

and

William Godwin William Godwin (3 March 1756 – 7 April 1836) was an English journalist, political philosopher and novelist. He is considered one of the first exponents of utilitarianism and the first modern proponent of anarchism. Godwin is most famous for ...

. He is editor of the

Harper Perennial Harper Perennial is a paperback imprint of the publishing house HarperCollins Publishers. Overview Harper Perennial has divisions located in New York, London, Toronto, and Sydney. The imprint is descended from the Perennial Library imprint foun ...

series Classic Biographies, launched in 2004. His 2005 monograph on biography and portraiture for the National Portrait Gallery, ''Insights: The Romantic Poets and their Circle'', was unusual in that it included scientists alongside literary writers. He has also written many drama-documentaries for

BBC Radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927). The service provides national radio stations covering th ...

, most recently The ''Frankenstein Experiment'' (2002), and ''A Cloud in a Paper Bag'' (2007) about 18th century balloon mania. October 2008 saw his first major work of biography in over a decade, ''The Age of Wonder: How the Romantic Generation Discovered the Beauty and Terror of Science'', published by HarperPress. In it he explores the scientific ferment that swept across Britain at the end of 18th century. Holmes proposes a radical vision of

science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

before

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended fr ...

, exploring the earliest ideas of

deep time Deep time is a term introduced and applied by John McPhee to the concept of geologic time in his book ''Basin and Range'' (1981), parts of which originally appeared in the ''New Yorker'' magazine. The philosophical concept of geological time w ...

and deep space, the creative rivalry with the

French scientific establishment Science and technology in France has a long history dating back to the Académie des Sciences, founded by Louis XIV in 1666, at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French scientific research. France's ach ...

, and the startling impact of discovery on great writers and poets such as

Mary Shelley Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (; ; 30 August 1797 – 1 February 1851) was an English novelist who wrote the Gothic fiction, Gothic novel ''Frankenstein, Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' (1818), which is considered an History of scie ...

Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and Peerage of the United Kingdom, peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and h ...

and

Keats John Keats (31 October 1795 – 23 February 1821) was an English poet of the second generation of Romantic poets, with Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley. His poems had been in publication for less than four years when he died of tuberculos ...

. The book received wide review coverage (see below), was featured on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...

's ''

Book of the Week ''Book of the Week'' is a BBC Radio 4 series that is broadcast daily on week days. Each week, extracts from the selected book, usually a non-fiction work, are read over five episodes; each fifteen-minute episode is broadcast in the morning (9:45a ...

'' and became a best-seller. In ''Falling Upwards: How We Took to the Air'' (2013), Holmes approaches the

history of ballooning The history of ballooning, both with hot air and gas, spans many centuries. It includes many firsts, including the first human flight, first flight across the English Channel, first flight in North America, and first aircraft related disaster. ...

by presenting biographies of French, English, and American balloonists. The personalities and experiences of those involved are varied and surprising. Balloons were used successfully to send information out of besieged Paris in 1870, and unsuccessfully to fly to the North Pole in the 1890s, to name only two examples. In Holmes' history of ballooning, science meets showmanship and both literary flights and actual adventures capture the imagination.

Bibliography

* ''One for Sorrow'' (Poems – published by Cafe Books in 1970) * ''Shelley: The Pursuit'' (Published by Weidenfeld and Nicolson in 1974, current edition published by HarperPerennial ) * ''Gautier: My Fantoms'' (Translation – Published by Quartet Books in 1976) * ''Shelley on Love: Selected Writings'' (Published by Anvil Books in 1980, current edition published by HarperPress ) * ''Coleridge (Past Masters)'' (Published by Oxford University Press in 1982) * ''Nerval:

The Chimeras ''The Chimeras'' (french: Les Chimères) is a sequence of sonnets by the French writer Gérard de Nerval, made up of eight individual poems and a total of twelve sonnets. The poems are: "El Desdichado", "Myrtho", "Horus", "Anteros", " Delphica", " ...

'' (translated by Peter Jay with an introduction by Holmes, Published by Anvil Press in 1985) * '' Footsteps: Adventures of a Romantic Biographer'' (Published by Hodder and Stoughton in 1985, current edition published by HarperPerennial ) * ''Mary Wollstonecraft and William Godwin: A Short Residence in Sweden and Memoirs'' (Published by Penguin Classics in 1987) * ''Kipling: Something of Myself'' (Co-author with Robert Hampson – (Published in Penguin Classics in 1987) * ''De Feministe en De Filosoof (Published in Amsterdam in 1988) * ''Coleridge: Early Visions'' (Published by Hodder and Stoughton in 1989, current edition published by HarperPerennial ) * ''Dr Johnson and Mr. Savage'' (Published Hodder and Stoughton in 1993, current edition published by HarperPerennial ) * ''Coleridge: Selected Poems'' (Editor – Published by HarperPress in 1996 ) * ''Coleridge: Darker Reflections'' (Published by HarperPress in 1998, current edition published by HarperPerennial ) * '' Sidetracks: Explorations of a Romantic Biographer'' (Published by HarperPress in 2000, current edition published by HarperPerennial ) * ''

The Age of Wonder ''The Age of Wonder: How the Romantic Generation Discovered the Beauty and Terror of Science'' is a 2008 popular biography book about the history of science written by Richard Holmes. In it, the author describes the scientific discoveries of th ...

: How the Romantic Generation Discovered the Beauty and Terror of Science'' (Published by HarperPress in 2008 ) * ''Falling Upwards: How we Took to the Air'' (Published by William Collins in 2013 ) * Classic Biographies Series (HarperPerennial) edited by Richard Holmes * ''Defoe on Sheppard and Wild: The True and Genuine Account of the Life and Actions of the Late

Jonathan Wild Jonathan Wild, also spelled Wilde (1682 or 1683 – 24 May 1725), was a London underworld figure notable for operating on both sides of the law, posing as a public-spirited vigilante entitled the "'' Thief-Taker General''". He simultaneously ran ...

'' by

Daniel Defoe Daniel Defoe (; born Daniel Foe; – 24 April 1731) was an English writer, trader, journalist, pamphleteer and spy. He is most famous for his novel ''Robinson Crusoe'', published in 1719, which is claimed to be second only to the Bible in its ...

(2004, ) * ''Southey on Nelson: The Life of Nelson'' by

Robert Southey Robert Southey ( or ; 12 August 1774 – 21 March 1843) was an English poet of the Romantic school, and Poet Laureate from 1813 until his death. Like the other Lake Poets, William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Southey began as a ra ...

(2004, ) * ''Scott on Zélide: Portrait of Zélide'' by Geoffrey Scott (2004, ) * ''Johnson on

Savage Savage may refer to: Places Antarctica * Savage Glacier, Ellsworth Land * Savage Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land * Savage Ridge, Victoria Land United States * Savage, Maryland, an unincorporated community * Savage, Minnesota, a city * Savage, Mi ...

: The Life of Mr Richard Savage'' by

(2005, ) * ''Godwin on Wollstonecraft: The Life of Mary Wollstonecraft'' by

(2005, ) * ''Gilchrist on Blake:

The Life of William Blake The ''Life of William Blake, "Pictor Ignotus." With selections from his poems and other writings'' is a two-volume work on the English painter and poet William Blake, first published in 1863. The first volume is a biography and the second a comp ...

'' by

Alexander Gilchrist Alexander Gilchrist (182830 November 1861), an English author, is known mainly as a biographer of William Etty and of William Blake. Gilchrist's biography of Blake is still a standard reference work about the poet. Gilchrist was born at Newingto ...

(2005, )

References

* Renders, Hans and de Haan, Binne, ‘Richard Holmes : A biographer-historian par excellence. Uncovering the roots and methodology of the modern field work of a romantic and humanistic Biographer’, Les Grandes figures historiques dans les lettres et les arts

n ligne N, or n, is the fourteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''en'' (pronounced ), plural ''ens''. History ...

n° 6bis (2017), URL: http://figures-historiques.revue.univ-lille3.fr/6bis-2017-issn-2261-0871/, p. 38-53.

External links

*
Review of ''Falling Upwards'' at the ''Oxonian Review''
with

Ramona Koval Ramona Koval (born 1954, Melbourne) is an Australian broadcaster, writer and journalist. Her parents were Yiddish-speaking survivors of The Holocaust who arrived in Melbourne from Poland in 1950. Koval is known for her extended and in-depth in ...

The Book Show Radio National, known on-air as RN, is an Australia-wide public service broadcasting radio network run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). From 1947 until 1985, the network was known as ABC Radio 2. History 1937: Predecessors an ...

ABC Radio National Radio National, known on-air as RN, is an Australia-wide public service broadcasting radio network run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). From 1947 until 1985, the network was known as ABC Radio 2. History 1937: Predecessors an ...

.
Richard Holmes page at HarperCollinsThe British AcademyRichard Holmes author page and article archive
from ''

The New York Review of Books ''The New York Review of Books'' (or ''NYREV'' or ''NYRB'') is a semi-monthly magazine with articles on literature, culture, economics, science and current affairs. Published in New York City, it is inspired by the idea that the discussion of i ...

''
Richard Holmes as guest on ''The Infinitie Monkey Cage'', BBC Radio 4 broadcast, "Science Museum," 23 July 2013
''The Age of Wonder'' press coverage
Richard Holmes interview
with the ''

Radiolab ''Radiolab'' is a radio program produced by WNYC, a public radio station in New York City, and broadcast on public radio stations in the United States. The show is nationally syndicated and is available as a podcast. Live shows were first offe ...

''
Review in the ''Independent'', September 26, 2008''The Times'' review, September 26, 2008"Following his footsteps" Interview in the ''Guardian'', Saturday September 27, 2008''Spectator'' review, October 15, 2008
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holmes, Richard 1946 births Living people Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature Academics of the University of East Anglia People educated at Downside School Alumni of Churchill College, Cambridge Fellows of Churchill College, Cambridge Fellows of the British Academy Officers of the Order of the British Empire James Tait Black Memorial Prize recipients American Book Award winners Mary Wollstonecraft scholars