Robert Williams Buchanan facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Robert Williams Buchanan
|
|
|---|---|
Robert Williams Buchanan, by Herbert Rose Barraud, c. 1893.
|
|
| Born | 18 August 1841 Caverswall, Staffordshire, England |
| Died | 10 June 1901 (aged 59) Streatham, England |
| Occupation | Poet, novelist, dramatist |
| Nationality | Scottish |
| Signature | |
 |
|
Robert Williams Buchanan (born August 18, 1841 – died June 10, 1901) was a Scottish writer. He was known for his poems, novels, and plays.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Robert Williams Buchanan was born in Caverswall, England. His father, also named Robert Buchanan, was a journalist. The family later moved to Glasgow, Scotland.
Robert Buchanan went to high school and university in Glasgow. There, he became good friends with another poet named David Gray. Buchanan later wrote an essay about their friendship. It told the story of their journey to London in 1860, hoping to become famous writers.
An American poet, James Mackintosh Kennedy, was also a friend of Buchanan. Kennedy wrote two poems about Buchanan. One was a "Lament" when Buchanan left America. The other was named "Robert Buchanan" after his death. Kennedy even named his son Robert Buchanan Kennedy.
His Writings
Buchanan started writing poetry when he lived in Glasgow. His first book, Poems and Love Lyrics, came out around 1857. His second book, Mary and other Poems, was published in 1859. These early books are very rare today.
In 1862, Buchanan worked with Charles Gibbon to write Storm-beaten. This book was a collection of short stories and poems. His first widely known book was Undertones, published in 1863. It was a collection of poems and was quite successful.
He then published more poetry books. These included Idyls and Legends of Inverburn (1865), London Poems (1866), and North Coast and other Poems (1868). In these books, he showed his talent for telling stories through poetry. He also wrote about the lives of ordinary people.
In 1870, Buchanan published The Book of Orm: A Prelude to the Epic. This was a more ambitious work about spiritual ideas. His writing made him more famous and people had high hopes for his future.
Later, Buchanan started writing novels and plays. Not all of them were successful. He also wrote for magazines. In 1871, he wrote a controversial article called The Fleshly School of Poetry. He used the pen name Thomas Maitland for this article. He later regretted some of the harsh things he said in it.
In 1876, Buchanan published The Shadow of the Sword. This was his first novel and one of his best. He also wrote many successful plays. Some of these were Lady Clare (1883), Sophia (1886), and The Charlatan (1894). He worked with Harriett Jay on the play Alone in London.
His later poems, The Outcast: a Rhyme for the Time (1891) and The Wandering Jew (1893), explored different ideas about Christianity. In his last years, Buchanan faced financial difficulties. He had to sell the rights to his books.
In late 1900, he suffered a stroke and never fully recovered. Robert Williams Buchanan died in Streatham on June 10, 1901. He is buried in a family grave in Southend on Sea, England.
Famous Poems
Buchanan's poems were collected into books several times. Some of his notable poems include:
- The Drama of Kings (1871)
- St Abe and his Seven Wives (1872) – a story about Salt Lake City
- Balder the Beautiful (1877)
- The City of Dream (1888)
Popular Novels
His early novels like The Shadow of the Sword and God and the Man (1881) are known for their clear storytelling. Other novels he wrote include:
- The Martyrdom of Madeline (1882)
- Foxglove Manor (1885)
- Effie Hetherington (1896)
- Matt: A Story of A Caravan (1897)
- Father Anthony (1898)
- Lady Kilpatrick (1898)
- The Master of the Mine (1885)
Other Writings
Buchanan also wrote essays and articles. Some of these were:
- David Gray and other Essays, chiefly on Poetry (1868)
- Master Spirits (1873)
- A Poet's Sketch Book (1883)
- A Look round Literature (1887)
- The Land of Lorne (1871) – a book about sailing along the west coast of Scotland.
Selected Articles
Buchanan wrote many articles for different magazines. Here are a few examples:
- (1872). "Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson," The Contemporary Review.
- (1876). "Æschylus and Victor Hugo," The New Quarterly Magazine.
- (1876). "Lucretius and Modern Materialism," The New Quarterly Magazine.
- (1885). "Free Thought in America," The North American Review.
- (1889). "The Modern Young Man as a Critic," The Universal Review.
Books in Other Languages
Buchanan's novel God and the Man was translated into German. It was published as "Christian" in 2007.
Adaptations of His Work
Some of Buchanan's poems were turned into music.
- Meg Blane: A Rhapsody of the Sea is a musical piece by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. It is based on a poem by Buchanan. It was finished in 1902.
- Another poem, "Fra Giacomo," was used for a musical piece by Cecil Coles in 1914.
