About
Sir Henry Rider Haggard, English novelist, was born in Bradenham, Norfolk, in 1856. After a stay in southern Africa where he participated in the annexation of the Transvaal, he turned to writing. His novel King Solomon's Mines (1885) was an immediate success, followed by She (1886-87). He wrote 57 novels, including the Allan Quatermain and Ayesha series, and became a central figure in the Victorian revival of adventure fiction. Knighted in 1912, he also took an interest in agriculture and published Rural England (1902). He died in London in 1925.
* 1856-06-22 — † 1925-05-14
Major works
- King Solomon's Mines (1885)novel
- She: A History of Adventure (1887)novel
- Allan Quatermain (1887)novel
- Cleopatra (1889)novel
- Rural England (1902)non-fiction
Key milestones
- 1877Participated in the annexation of the Transvaal by hoisting the Union Jack.
- 1912Knighted for services to agriculture.
- 1926Posthumous publication of his autobiography, The Days of My Life.
Themes
adventureexplorationlost civilizationsimperialismmythology
Sources: britannica.com · oxfordbibliographies.com · onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu