Herbert Eyres Britton and Diane

Herbert Eyres Britton's Diane [1920] was his third collection of poems after The Visions of a Dreamer (1912) and War Poems – date and publisher unknown (1). He dedicated it to his mother Maud May Britton, and a six-sonnet sequence in the collection concerns his recently deceased wife Elsie.

Also of note is 'In Memoriam', a poem written on the death of the working-class poet Noah Cooke, a weaver from Kidderminster who appears to have been a friend of Herbert's. The following link is to Sonya O. Rose's criticism of Cooke (2).

(1) Herbert E. Britton, Diane: And Other Poems (London: Arthur H. Stockwell, [1922]).

(2) Sonya O. Rose, Limited Livelihoods: Gender and Class in Nineteenth Century England (London: Routledge, 1992).

Reginald Ernest James Britton, Maud May Britton and Herbert Eyres Britton

The photo below, from left to right, shows Maud May Britton – the second wife of solicitor and poet John James Britton – between her sons Reginald Ernest James Britton and Herbert Eyres Britton.

Many thanks to Sandie Coomber and Robert Hughes for making possible the publication of this image.

The Yews, or Maryland, Halford, Warwickshire

John James Britton, solicitor, minor poet, and the paternal grandfather of Lionel Britton, spent his last years (roughly 1896–1913) in Halford. The postcard above shows his house – Maryland, or 'The Yews' as he called his home in 1912 in his Preface to his son Herbert Eyres's first book, The Visions of a Poet.

Did he call the house after the yew trees there? And here I show my ignorance: if yew trees are evident in the postcard, I would be delighted of someone could let me know of the fact either by replying to this blog (your email as username and a password required), or by directly sending an email to anottsquair@hotmail.com. Thank you.

And many thanks as ever to the Britton family's ancestral power researcher, fuelled by just a naked light bulb, the internet, and a crate of beer – Robert Hughes, John James's great-great-grandson.

Herbert Eyres Britton: Poet

With all the manic energy of a permanently starved squirrel on speed, Robert Hughes continues to excavate his past (1). This time he's discovered that the poet Herbert Eyres Britton, who was Lionel Britton's uncle and a great-great-uncle of Robert himself, married Elsie Miriam Hickman (31) of Bishopstone (a village in Wiltshire just to the east of Swindon) in the parish church in 1909. Herbert was then 25 and a bank clerk living in Kidderminster. This led me back to Herbert's first book of poetry, The Visions of a Dreamer (1912), which includes a poem about Bishopstone. The book was published and printed in Kiddermister, and he also wrote a number of poems for the Kidderminster Shuttle; there are other poems about the River Stour, Kinver Edge and the Black Country, and there's a river trip from Holt Fleet to Stourport, which mentions Lincombe and Shrawley.

(1) Actually, I think he's on Budweiser. (Yes, he's informed me that this is the case. Who needs boring real ale?)

Herbert Eyres Britton's First Book, and His Article on His Father, the Poet John James Britton

Herbert E. Britton's first book of poems was The Visions of a Dreamer: Sonnets, Poems and Lyrics (Kidderminster: Edward Parry, 1912), with a Foreword by his father John James Britton. He published two more books: Diane: And Other Poems (London: A. H. Stockwell, [1920]), and The Way of Loveliness: And Other Poems (London: Erskine Macdonald, 1922). In 1940, he sent the Reverend Basil Ainley a copy, along with a poetic commentary, from his home in Moira Road, Ashby-de-la-Zouch.

Below is Herbert's entry for John James Britton in Staffordshire Poets. The date of the death of John James's first wife, Catherine Erskine Britton (née Smith), is incorrect: she died in 1879:

'John James Britton
John James Britton was born at Handsworth in 1832. He was educated at King Edward’s School, New Street, Birmingham, and for a time practised as a solicitor at Newcastle-on-Tyne. The failing health of his wife, however, necessitated a change; and, with this object in view, he bought a practice at Maidenhead. Unfortunately, this did not have the desired effect, and she died in 1872. Although he had just built himself a house in this beautiful Thames-side resort, he took a dislike to the place, and, selling his home and the practice, went to Normandy, where he lived for some years. On his return to England he resided for a time in Alcester, where he again married. The later years of his life, however, were spent at Halford Bridge, some seven and a half miles from Stratford-on-Avon.

Whilst still an articled clerk he was a writer on The Critic, and in 1859 he published his first book, Tales for a Cosy Nook, which was a collection of short stories.

In 1867 Carélla, a poem in suave blank verse, supported by a number of lyrics, was produced, and in 1882 The Lay of the Lady Ida and other poems appeared. This was followed in 1884 by A Sheaf of Ballads.

He was also author of a novel entitled Flight.

Many of his prose and poetic productions appeared in English periodicals, whilst others saw print in America. He was acquainted with Michael Rossetti and Robert Browning. A Greek, Latin, and French scholar with a wide knowledge of English classics, he was a most delightful companion, the more so as he had an unfailing sense of humour.

His death took place in 1913, and he was interred in the churchyard of Halford Bridge. Although most of his published poems are somewhat lengthy, the following poem gives some idea of the felicity of his style and his mastery of rhythm. [The poem is Chastity.]

Herbert E[yres] Britton' (1)

(1) Russell Markland and Charles Henry Poole, Staffordshire Poets (Lytham: N. Ling, 1928), p. 209.