Leigh Hunt & His Prison Term
Posted by Patricia Bingham on March 26, 1998 at 22:34:21:
Since the subject of prison life has come up in several places, I thought I might add this amusing tidbit. I regret that I cannot give credit to the book that gave the info to me, I am embarrassed to say I have no idea. I tried to find it in the obvious places but could not. It is about Mr. Leigh Hunt, who, as some of you might know already, was a young editor of the Examiner, the leading liberal magazine of the day. The Examiner was set up in 1808 by Mr. Hunt and I have the following descriptions of the gentleman: poet, critic, polemicist, wit, and something of a dandy.
Anyway, on February 13, 1813, the gentleman and his brother John were sentenced to 2 years in separate prisons for slander against the Prince Regent. They had been for some time giving the Prince Regent no little trouble until finally, after several warnings to curb their tongues, whap! He threw them both in the slammer.
Leigh was sent to Horsemonger Lane Gaol. He borrowed to turn his two rooms (yes, the rascal managed to buy a suite) into a snug apartment papered with trellised roses and furnished with bookcases, busts of his favorite poets, and, if you can believe it, a piano! Venician blinds covered the bars on his windows, the prison yard outside was planted with pansies and sweetbriar, a ceiling of his living room was painted with a blue sky of fleecy clouds. Leigh moved his wife & children into his apartment and began recieving his admirers. John, his brother, served his term quietly at Cold Bath Fields. Leigh continued to edit through his prison term which expired Feb. 2, 1815.
- Leigh Hunt & the Shelleys P. Bingham 13:21:19 4/08/98
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- Wow! And we complain nowadays about prisoners having T.V.'s! nfm Marie Bernadette 18:35:57 3/27/98
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- Careening wildly off-topic... Marie Bernadette 13:47:56 3/30/98
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- Do you come up with these things yourself? P. Bingham 19:24:04 3/30/98
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- Actually, Marie Bernadette 23:48:11 3/30/98
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- Actually, Marie Bernadette 23:48:11 3/30/98
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- Do you come up with these things yourself? P. Bingham 19:24:04 3/30/98
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- "You wouldn't mind if I bring along my piano?" (nfm) P. Bingham 00:02:33 3/28/98
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- Careening wildly off-topic... Marie Bernadette 13:47:56 3/30/98
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