Historian, essayist and poet, Thomas Babington Macaulay (1800 59) is described by his biographer as possessing a mind that was born wise and nurtured to a state of brilliance. With an ability to imbue his most scholarly works with a narrative power 'on a level with that of the greatest masters of prose fiction', Macaulay's multi-volume History of England assured his fame in middle-class Victorian households. Nevertheless, few today are familiar with the author's personal history. Published in the first series of English Men of Letters in 1882, this biography by James Cotter Morison (1832 88)...

At the outset of this book, published in the first 'English Men of Letters' series in 1883, the poet and author Austin Dobson (1840 1921) declares his intention to restrict himself to giving a 'purely biographical' account of the life of the lawyer, novelist and dramatist Henry Fielding (1707 54). Fielding is probably best remembered today for his novels Joseph Andrews and The History of Tom Jones (1749), but in his own day he was famous not only for his writings in many different genres but also for his work as an innovatory Justice of the Peace in London. Dobson recounts Fielding's life...

George Gordon, Lord Byron (1788 1824) is regarded as one of Britain's greatest poets. As famous for his personality as he was for his poetry, he was rebellious, extravagant and controversial, his life peppered with scandal. First published in the English Men of Letters series in 1880, this biography by John Nichol (1833 94), who also wrote on Carlyle for the series, argues that while Byron did not shape the Romantic era, his work was still highly influential on his contemporaries. Setting Byron's work in an historical context, Nichol shows how the society of his time both idolised him and...

This biography of the philosopher John Locke (1632 1704) was published in the first series of English Men of Letters in 1880. Its author, Thomas Fowler (1832 1904) held the posts of Wykeham Professor of Logic, President of Corpus Christi College, and Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University; the editor of the series, John Morley, had been his pupil. The influence of Locke is pervasive in many fields theology, education, psychology, economics and political theory as well as philosophy and Fowler analyses the effect of his writings in five chapters (one dedicated to the Essay Concerning Human...

Published in 1881 in the first series of English Men of Letters, this biography by Sir Sidney Colvin of the poet Walter Savage Landor (1775 1864) opens with the claim 'few men have ever impressed their peers so much, or the general public so little'. Landor's turbulent life included suspension from both Rugby and Oxford, numerous love affairs, an illegitimate child, and frequent legal trouble over his writing, including a libel case which caused him to leave England permanently. He is best known for his six-volume Imaginary Conversations, a series of dialogues between characters ranging from...

John Dryden (1631 1700) was an English poet and playwright, whose works led to the English Restoration period becoming known as 'The Age of Dryden'. Published in 1881 in the first series of English Men of Letters, this biography by George Saintsbury (1845 1933), author and critic, sets Dryden's work against the literary landscape of its time, arguing that he reformed English literature, and exploring how he did so, the nature of the reform, and Dryden's contribution to literary history. He shows Dryden to have been a man without moral, political or intellectual agendas who, while not...

This critical essay and biography by Henry James (1843 1916) of his fellow American novelist Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804 64), today best remembered for The Scarlet Letter and The House of the Seven Gables, was published in the first 'English Men of Letters' series in 1879, and is notable for being the only volume in that series devoted to an American. It is now recognised as being one of the first critical studies of an American writer, and it remains an important work for students and admirers both of James and of Hawthorne. In his critical assessment, James, whose own writing was strongly...

This biography of Geoffrey Chaucer (c. 1340 1400) was published in the first series of English Men of Letters in 1879. Its author, Sir Adolphus William Ward (1837 1924), a prominent scholar who became President of the British Academy, wrote on English literature from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries, translated Curtius' History of Greece, and was a historian of both Britain and Germany. He approached the task of writing Chaucer's life as a historian rather than as a literary critic, emphasising the archival sources from which information on Chaucer the man, the civil servant and the...

Sir Walter Scott (1771 1832) is famous for his poetry and historical romances such as Ivanhoe and Rob Roy. As the first English-language author to achieve truly international fame in his lifetime, his depiction of Scottish history and culture spread around the world so effectively that it persists even today. Scott also contributed to Scottish history himself: in 1818 he helped to unearth Scotland's missing crown jewels, and he also led the campaign that saved the Scottish banknote when the London Parliament threatened its existence. First published in 1878 in the first series of 'English Men...

Described by his biographer as the author of 'monumental and supreme' histories, Edward Gibbon (1737 94) is widely acknowledged as a major figure of the Enlightenment and the father of modern historical scholarship. However, despite these epithets, the personal life of one of the eighteenth century's most successful authors remains unknown to many of his readers. Published in the first series of English Men of Letters in 1878 (and going into a second edition in the same year), this biography by James Cotter Morison (1832 88) provides a learned but accessible account of the man who wrote The...