William Ernest Henley | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 23 August 1849 Gloucester, Gloucestershire, England |
| Died | 11 July 1903 (aged 53) Woking, Surrey, England |
| Occupation | Poet, critic, and editor |
| Nationality | English |
| Education | The Crypt School, Gloucester. St Andrews University. |
| Period | c. 1870–1903 |
| Notable works | "Invictus" |
| Spouse | Hannah Johnson Boyle |
| Children | Margaret Henley |
William Ernest Henley (23 August 1849 – 11 July 1903) was an English poet, writer, critic and editor. Though he wrote several books of poetry, Henley is remembered most often for his 1875 poem "Invictus". A fixture in London literary circles, the one-legged Henley was an inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson's character Long John Silver (Treasure Island, 1883),[1] while his young daughter Margaret Henley inspired J. M. Barrie's choice of the name Wendy for the heroine of his play Peter Pan (1904).[2][3]
- ^ Stevenson, R.L. (1906). The Letters of Robert Louis Stevenson, Vol. 1. Methuen and Co. p. 92. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
I will now make a confession. It was the sight of your maimed strength and masterfulness that begot John Silver in TREASURE ISLAND. Of course, he is not in any other quality or feature the least like you; but the idea of the maimed man, ruling and dreaded by the sound, was entirely taken from you.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
MehewOxfordDNBwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Green, Lancelyn Rogers. Fifty Years of Peter Pan. P. Davies, 1954. p. 36.