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Henry Kingsley (2 January 1830 – 24 May 1876) was an English novelist, brother of the better-known Charles Kingsley. He was an early exponent of
On his return to the UK in 1857, Kingsley devoted himself to literature, and wrote several well-regarded novels, including ''Geoffry Hamlyn'', set in
Henry Kingsley brief bio from National Library of Australia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kingsley, Henry 19th-century English novelists English emigrants to Australia 1830 births 1876 deaths People educated at King's College School, London Alumni of King's College London People from Barnack Deaths from oral cancer Deaths from cancer in England English male novelists 19th-century male writers Victorian novelists Burials in Sussex
muscular Christianity
Muscular Christianity is a philosophical movement that originated in England in the mid-19th century, characterized by a belief in patriotic duty, discipline, self-sacrifice, masculinity, and the moral and physical beauty of athleticism.
The mov ...
in an 1859 work, ''The Recollections of Geoffry Hamlyn''.
Life
Kingsley was born atBarnack
Barnack is a village and civil parish, now in the Peterborough unitary authority of the ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England and the historic county of Northamptonshire. Barnack is in the north-west of the unitary authority, south-east ...
Rectory, Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by
two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...
, the son of the Rev. Charles Kingsley the elder and Mary, ''née'' Lucas.
Charles Kingsley came of a long line of clergymen and soldiers. There were several writers in the family besides Henry and Charles, including Mary Kingsley
Mary Henrietta Kingsley (13 October 1862 – 3 June 1900) was an English ethnographer, scientific writer, and explorer whose travels throughout West Africa and resulting work helped shape European perceptions of both African cultures and ...
, an explorer and writer, Charlotte Kingsley Chanter, a botanical writer and novelist, and George Kingsley, a traveller and writer.
Henry Kingsley's boyhood was spent at Clovelly
Clovelly () is a privately-owned harbour village in the Torridge district of Devon, England. The settlement and surrounding land belongs to John Rous who inherited it from his mother in 1983. He belongs to the Hamlyn family who have managed t ...
and Chelsea
Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to:
Places Australia
* Chelsea, Victoria
Canada
* Chelsea, Nova Scotia
* Chelsea, Quebec
United Kingdom
* Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames
** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
, before attending King's College School
King's College School, also known as Wimbledon, KCS, King's and KCS Wimbledon, is a public school in Wimbledon, southwest London, England. The school was founded in 1829 by King George IV, as the junior department of King's College London an ...
, King's College London
King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...
, and Worcester College
Worcester College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. The college was founded in 1714 by the benefaction of Sir Thomas Cookes, 2nd Baronet (1648–1701) of Norgrove, Worcestershire, whose coat of arms w ...
, Oxford, which he left without graduating.
An opportune legacy from a relation enabled him to leave Oxford free of debt and emigrate to Australia. He arrived in Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
in the ''Gauntlet'' in December 1853 with Henry Venables. He became involved in gold-digging, and later joined the mounted police
Mounted police are police who patrol on horseback or camelback. Their day-to-day function is typically picturesque or ceremonial, but they are also employed in crowd control because of their mobile mass and height advantage and increasingly in the ...
.
For some time Kingsley had little or no money and carried his swag from station to station. Philip Russell stated in 1887 that he employed Kingsley at his station Langa-Willi, and that ''Geoffry Hamlyn'' (1859) was begun there. Miss Rose Browne, daughter of "Rolf Boldrewood
Thomas Alexander Browne (born Brown, 6 August 1826 – 11 March 1915) was an Australian author who published many of his works under the pseudonym Rolf Boldrewood. He is best known for his 1882 bushranging novel '' Robbery Under Arms''.
Biog ...
", stated it was on her father's suggestion that Kingsley began to write. Russell's story is confirmed by her further statement that her father gave Kingsley a letter to Mr Mitchell of Langa-Willi, that he stayed with Mitchell, and there wrote ''Geoffry Hamlyn''.
On his return to the UK in 1857, Kingsley devoted himself to literature, and wrote several well-regarded novels, including ''Geoffry Hamlyn'', set in Colebrooke, Devon
Colebrooke is a village and parish in Devon, England about 8 km west of Crediton. The main point of interest is the church and the connection to Henry Kingsley's novel ''The Recollections of Geoffry Hamlyn''. Also Uncle Tom Cobley, of the ...
, and Australia, which the late 19th-century English author George Gissing
George Robert Gissing (; 22 November 1857 – 28 December 1903) was an English novelist, who published 23 novels between 1880 and 1903. His best-known works have reappeared in modern editions. They include '' The Nether World'' (1889), '' New Gr ...
called "unliterary stuff", ''The Hillyars and the Burtons'' (1865), '' Ravenshoe'' (1861) and ''Austin Elliot'' (1863). ''Ravenshoe'' is generally seen as the best. Henry Kingsley married Sarah Maria Haselwood on 19 July 1864. In 1869, he moved to Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
to edit the ''Daily Review
The ''Daily Review'' was a daily newspaper published in Hayward, California. Floyd L. Sparks was owner of the ''Review'' from 1944 to 1985, along with '' The Argus'' of Fremont and the ''Tri-Valley Herald''. It was last owned by Bay Area News Gr ...
'', but soon gave this up and in 1870 became war correspondent for the paper in the Franco-German War.
Kingsley also published ''Leighton Court'' (1866), ''Mademoiselle Mathilde'' (1868), ''Tales of Old Travel Re-narrated'' (1869), ''Stretton'' (1869), ''The Boy in Grey'' (1871), ''Hetty and other Stories'' (1871), ''Old Margaret'' (1871), ''Hornby Mills and other Stories'' (1872), ''Valentine'' (1872), ''The Harveys'' (1872), ''Oakshott Castle'' (1873), ''Reginald Hetherege'' (1874), ''Number Seventeen'' (1875), ''The Grange Garden'' (1876), ''Fireside Studies'' (Essays) (1876), and ''The Mystery of the Island'' (1877).
Kingsley and his wife moved to Cuckfield
Cuckfield ( ) is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Mid Sussex District, Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England, on the southern slopes of the Weald. It lies south of London, north of Brighton, and east northeas ...
, Sussex late in 1874, where Kingsley died of cancer of the tongue on 24 May 1876.
Further reading
*References
;Attribution * *External links
* *Henry Kingsley brief bio from National Library of Australia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kingsley, Henry 19th-century English novelists English emigrants to Australia 1830 births 1876 deaths People educated at King's College School, London Alumni of King's College London People from Barnack Deaths from oral cancer Deaths from cancer in England English male novelists 19th-century male writers Victorian novelists Burials in Sussex