author
Henry Giles
1809–1882
An Irish-born lecturer and essayist, he built a wide audience on both sides of the Atlantic with thoughtful talks on literature, religion, and public life. His writing blends moral seriousness with a lively, conversational style that made him a popular speaker in the 19th century.
1 Audiobook
Unitarianism Defended A Series of Lectures by Three Protestant Dissenting Ministers of Liverpool
by John Hamilton Thom, Henry Giles, James Martineau
About the author
Born in County Wexford, Ireland, in 1809, Henry Giles became known as a minister, lecturer, and writer. He was raised Roman Catholic, later moved through other religious positions, and eventually became associated with Unitarianism. His career took shape first in Ireland and England, where he gained notice as a speaker and controversialist.
In 1840 he emigrated to the United States, where he became especially well known as a public lecturer. He spoke and wrote on literature, religion, and social questions, and his essays helped establish his reputation with American readers. Among the works most often linked with him are Lectures and Essays, Christian Thoughts on Life, and Human Life in Shakespeare.
Giles died in 1882 near Boston, Massachusetts. He is remembered less as a novelist than as a gifted 19th-century man of letters whose sermons, lectures, and essays connected intellectual debate with a broad general audience.