Harriet King (poet) facts for kids
Harriet Eleanor Hamilton-King (1840–1920) was an English poet and writer of religious texts. She was known for her strong feelings about important events in her time, especially the effort to unite Italy.
Her Life Story
Harriet was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1840. Her father was Admiral W. A. Baillie Hamilton, a high-ranking officer in the navy. Her mother was Lady Harriet Hamilton, whose brother was the Duke of Abercorn, a very important noble.
In 1864, Harriet married Henry Samuel King. He was a banker, meaning he managed money, and a publisher, who printed and sold books. They lived together in a place called the Manor House in Chigwell, Essex. After her husband passed away in 1878, Harriet and her children moved to a different part of the country.
Harriet felt very strongly about Mazzini and the idea of Italian unification. Giuseppe Mazzini was an Italian patriot who believed that the many small states in Italy should come together to form one big country. This movement, called Italian unification, was about creating a united Italy. Harriet's support for this cause inspired many of her poems and writings.
Later in her life, in 1890, Harriet became a member of the Roman Catholic Church. She was welcomed into the church by Cardinal Henry Edward Manning, who was a very important leader in the Catholic Church.
Her Books and Poems
Harriet Eleanor Hamilton-King wrote several collections of poems and other works. Many of them showed her deep feelings and her interest in important events, like the unification of Italy.
Here are some of her well-known works:
- Aspromonte and Other Poems (1869)
- The Disciples (1873)
- A Book of Dreams (1883)
- The Sermon in the Hospital (a part of The Disciples) (1885)
- Ballads of the North and Other Poems (1889)
- The Prophecy of Westminster and Other Poems: in Honour of Henry Edward, Cardinal Manning (1895)
- The Hours of the Passion and Other Poems (1902)
- Letters and Recollections of Mazzini (1912)
