Horace Smith

Here is a biographical sketch of Horace (Horatio) Smith, the English poet and novelist:

Horace Smith – Life, Works, and Legacy

Full name: Horatio “Horace” Smith
Born: December 31, 1779, London, England Died: July 12, 1849, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England

Early Life and Background

• Horace was the fifth of eight children of Robert Smith (1747–1832) and Mary Bogle.

• He was educated at Chigwell School along with his older brother James Smith, who was also a writer.

• Originally born Horatio Smith, he later adopted “Horace” as his pen name.

Career & Literary Activities

Business Life

• Before fully engaging in writing, Smith became a stockbroker and achieved financial success in business.

• His financial stability allowed him to pursue literary interests more freely.

Writing & Collaboration

• Together with his brother James, he co-authored Rejected Addresses; or, The New Theatrum Poetarum (1812), a celebrated collection of parodies of contemporary poets and writers.

• Horace also contributed his own versions of the “Rejected Addresses” parodies, targeting authors like Byron and Scott.

• He participated in a sonnet writing competition with Percy Bysshe Shelley on the theme of the Nile, composing a sonnet titled On a Stupendous Leg of Granite (later renamed) to accompany Shelley’s Ozymandias.

Novels and Later Works

• After establishing himself, Smith wrote a number of historical novels. Some titles include Brambletye House (1826), Tor Hill (1826), Reuben Apsley (1827), Zillah (1828), The New Forest (1829), Walter Colyton (1830), among others.

• He also published collections like Gaieties and Gravities (1826), containing essays and verse. Among the pieces in it, his “Address to the Mummy in Belzoni’s Exhibition” is still remembered.

Style, Themes & Contributions

• Smith’s literary work is often characterized by wit, parody, and formal skill. His parodic work was not intended with malice; many of his contemporaries accepted it in good spirits.

• In his novels and essays, he often combined historical settings, moral questions, and descriptive detail.

• His participation in the Rejected Addresses project cemented his place in literary circles of the Romantic period, and his parodies remain among the most celebrated in English letters.