British man of letters, born near Versailles on the 27th of July 1870. His father was a Frenchman; his mother, an Englishwoman whose maiden name was Bessie Rayner Parkes, took an active share at an early date in the woman-suffrage movement. Educated at Edgbaston, he served as a driver in the 8th Regiment of French artillery before proceeding to Balliol College, Oxford. At Oxford he was prominent both in his schools and at the Union, and soon became known as a clever writer and speaker. He sat in the House of Commons for Salford from 1906 to 1910 as a Liberal. His very numerous writings include verse, children’s books, essays, biography and fiction, as well as military history. Amongst them may be mentioned Danton (1899); Robespierre (1901); The Path to Rome (1902); Esto Perpetua (1906); Cautionary Tales (1907); Mr. Clutterbuck’s Election (1908); A Change in the Cabinet (1909); Marie Antoinette (1910) and A General Sketch of the European War (1915–16). See also “The Mowing of a Field.”
