Author: Hunt, James Henry Leigh
Biography:
Hunt, James Henry Leigh (1784-1859: ODNB)
Hunt's parents Isaac and Mary (Shewell) Hunt were Americans, his father a successful lawyer and activist in Philadelphia. But Hunt was born in Southgate (now part of London) some years after the family was forced to flee, with other Loyalists, in 1776. He attended Christ's Hospital like Coleridge and Lamb (qq.v.), though not until after they had left the school. He embarked early upon a writer's career: in 1800 he published his Juvenilia, poems written between the ages of 12 and 16, by subscription. Contributions to major newspapers and magazines led to regular freelance journalism, notably theatrical reviews. The pivotal moment came when he and his brother John founded a new weekly paper, The Examiner, taking the roles of editor and publisher respectively. From January 1808 until 1821, The Examiner was the centre of Hunt's life. It had the distinction of publishing original poetry and essays by new writers such as Hazlitt, Keats, and Shelley. As a liberal--to some minds, radical--publication, however, it made enemies. Though the Hunts escaped some legal challenges, in 1813 they were jailed for a libel on the Prince Regent and became popular martyrs. Hunt's two years in prison were productive from a literary and social point of view but damaged his health. In 1809 he had married Marianne Kent. They had a large brood of children and, given their unstable finances, frequently moved house in and around London. From 1821 to 1825 they were in Italy, Hunt having accepted Byron's invitation to join him and Shelley in a new venture, The Liberal. But Shelley died and the project fell apart. The Hunts returned to England where Hunt worked ceaselessly on whatever would pay, mostly anthologies and collections of prior work but also editions, translations, a play (A Legend of Florence, 1840), an uncharacteristically bitter memoir of Byron (1828), and his own Autobiography (1850). Marianne died in 1857, Hunt himself in 1859: both are buried in Kensal Green Cemetery. (ODNB 9 May 2019)
Other Names:
- J. H. L. Hunt
- Leigh Hunt
- Hunt