author
H. L. L.
b. 1783
Born in Saint-Domingue in 1783, this little-known memoirist left behind a striking first-person account of revolution, sea travel, capture, and religious conversion. His book offers a rare view of the Atlantic world at the turn of the nineteenth century, told from lived experience.
1 Audiobook
About the author
Very little is firmly documented about H. L. L. beyond what survives in his own book, A short account of the extraordinary life and travels of H.L.L. Published in the early 1800s, it presents him as a native of Saint-Domingue who described his childhood, education, and travels through France, the Caribbean, and South America.
In that narrative, he recounts living through the era of the French Revolution, going to sea, serving as a cabin boy on a privateering vessel, and moving through places including Guadeloupe, Brazil, and Cayenne. He later wrote of returning toward Saint-Domingue in 1803, being captured by an English ship, and ending up imprisoned in Ashbourne, Derbyshire.
The memoir also tells a spiritual story: during illness and confinement, he described a turn toward Methodism and framed his life as an example of providence and conversion. Even though many personal details remain uncertain, the book stands out as a vivid autobiographical glimpse into upheaval, travel, war, and faith in the Atlantic world.