William Henry Giles Kingston
William Henry Giles Kingston (1814-1880) was an English author and journalist, notable for his prolific contributions to literature for young readers during the Victorian era. Born in London, Kingston spent his early years in Porto, Portugal, where his family was involved in commerce. He returned to England for his education and later dedicated himself to writing and advocating for causes related to the sea and sailors, founding the Society for Missions to Seamen in 1856. Kingston gained fame with his adventure novel "Peter the Whaler," published in 1851, which emphasized themes of bravery and patriotism, resonating deeply with the youth of his time.
Over nearly thirty years, he authored over one hundred works, including novels that were set in various global locations, although some were criticized for factual inaccuracies due to his lack of firsthand experience. Additionally, he translated works by notable authors such as Jules Verne, although some evidence suggests his wife may have played a significant role in these translations. Despite his success, Kingston faced financial difficulties later in life, leading to grants from literary funds. He passed away in Willesden, leaving behind a legacy as one of the most popular children's writers of the nineteenth century.
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William Henry Giles Kingston
Writer
- Born: February 28, 1814
- Birthplace: London, England
- Died: August 5, 1880
- Place of death: Willesden, England
Biography
William Henry Giles Kingston was born in London, England, on February 28, 1914, the second of eleven children of former sailor Lucy Henry Kingston (who owed his given name to an great-uncle also named Lucy) and Frances Sophia Rooke Kingston. He grew up in Porto, Portugal, where his well-to-do family belonged to a group of merchants known as the “English Factory.” Kingston was sent to England in 1824 to attend Eagle House preparatory school in Brook Green, Hammersmith, and subsequently studied under a private tutor until 1832.
Kingston returned to Portugal in 1833, and for the next decade spent much of his time there, but in 1844 made England his permanent home. He married Agnes Kinloch in 1853, and the couple had eight children. The family moved from London to Wimborne, Dorset, in 1859, and to Stormont Lodge, Willesden, in 1878.
Throughout his adult life Kingston was involved in a number of patriotic and social organizations and causes. He was particularly interested in the sea and the welfare of sailors, for whom he founded the Society for Missions to Seamen in 1856. Concerned with the expansion of the British Empire, he became honorary secretary of a society encouraging emigration to the many British colonies. He also lectured widely on the subject and edited several periodicals devoted to it, including The Colonist and The Colonial Magazine.
Kingston began his writing career as a journalist on Portuguese subjects. His first book, The Circassian Chief, was a novel set in the Caucasus, but his next two works, The Lusitanian Sketches of the Pen and Pencil (a book of travel) and The Prime Minister: A Story of the Days of the Great Marquis of Pombal, dealt with Portugal. As a result of his activities on behalf of a commercial treaty concluded between Great Britain and Portugal in 1842, he was knighted by the Portuguese government.
Kingston went on to publish other novels as well as several tracts dealing with emigration, but his first real success came with Peter the Whaler, which appeared in 1851. An adventure book for boys that drew on Kingston’s knowledge of life at sea and celebrated the Victorian virtues of bravery, patriotism, and pluck, it proved immensely popular, setting the pattern for the rest of his career and allowing him to retire from the family business. Over a period of almost three decades, he wrote well over one hundred such books, becoming one of the most popular writers for young people of the nineteenth century. He utilized settings from around the world, but occasionally his lack of firsthand knowledge led him into factual errors. Kingston is also credited with translating three novels by Jules Verne and The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss, but evidence suggests that the translations were actually made by his wife.
Although Kingston wrote prolifically and indefatigably, he apparently exhausted his resources at the height of his career, receiving grants in 1868 from the Royal Literary Fund and the Queen’s Civil List. He died August 5, 1880, in Willesden.