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Henry Fielding Dickens
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Sir Henry Fielding Dickens, KC (16 January 1849 – 21 December 1933) was the eighth of ten children born to British author Charles Dickens and his wife Catherine. The most successful of all of Dickens's children, he was a barrister, a KC and Common Serjeant of London, a senior legal office which he held for over 15 years.
ised in the church of St. Mary Marylebone in London on April 21, 1849, Henry Fielding Dickens was named after Henry Fielding, one of his father's favourite authors.
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Sir Henry Fielding Dickens, KC (16 January 1849 – 21 December 1933) was the eighth of ten children born to British author Charles Dickens and his wife Catherine. The most successful of all of Dickens's children, he was a barrister, a KC and Common Serjeant of London, a senior legal office which he held for over 15 years.
Early life
Baptised in the church of St. Mary Marylebone in London on April 21, 1849, Henry Fielding Dickens was named after Henry Fielding, one of his father's favourite authors. His family nicknames were 'H', 'Mr Harry', and 'Mr H'. While a boy living at Gads Hill Place, his father's country home, he, with his brother Edward, started the 'Gad's Hill Gazette', a family newspaper printed on a small printing press given to him by Mr Wills, the sub-editor of All the Year Round. His father, Charles Dickens, and H F Chorley were contributors.
Legal career
Dickens was educated at Rochester Grammar School, Wimbledon School and at a private boarding school in Boulogne-sur-Mer along with his brothers Alfred and Sydney. He attended Trinity Hall, Cambridge from 1868, graduating BA in Mathematics (29th wrangler) in 1872 before studying Law at the university. In 1873 he was called to the Bar, and in 1892 he was appointed Queen's Counsel. In 1899 he became a Bencher of the Inner Temple. Sir Henry's best recalled case was his defence of Kitty Byron for the murder of her lover in 1902. Although convicted, Dickens's defence was so spirited that Byron was given a reduced prison sentence due to public petition
For some years he was the Recorder for Deal and Maidstone in Kent. His interests included fencing, and he was the first President of the Chatham Yachting Club. He was appointed Common Serjeant of London in November 1917, in which capacity he judged criminal trials at the Old Bailey for over 15 years, retiring on October 18 1932. He repeatedly refused nominations for election to Parliament, believing it would adversely affect his legal practice.
Later years
From October 1914 he performed recitals of his father's works in support of the Red Cross Society. These were based on the readings given by his father during his reading tours, and included excerpts from David Coppefield, A Christmas Carol, The Chimes, and The Cricket on the Hearth. Through his efforts he raised £1,200 for the Society. He was a Life President of the Dickens Fellowship.
Personal life
Henry 'Harry' Dickens married Marie Roche (1852 – 1940), the daughter of Monsieur Antonin Roche, on 25 October 1876 in Portman Square in London, they having three sons and three daughters together. His son Philip Charles Dickens is buried beside him in Putney Vale Cemetery in London, while a second son, Henry Charles Dickens, was the father of the author Monica Dickens. A third son, Cedric 'Ceddy' Dickens, was killed on September 9 1916 during the battle of Ginchy during World War I.
Dickens was also the father of Admiral Sir Gerald Charles Dickens, and the grandfather of Cedric Charles Dickens, an author and the steward of Charles Dickens's literary legacy, and Monica Dickens, the author. He is the great great grandfather of biographer and writer Lucinda Hawksley.
Henry Fielding Dickens was appointed a Knight Bachelor in 1922, and retired in August 1932. He died in 1933 two weeks after being hit by a motorcycle.
See also
Publications
- 'Memories of My Father' Gollancz, London(1928)
- 'The Recollections of Sir Henry Dickens, K.C.' W. Heinemann Ltd (1934).
External links
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