Letters from Henry Crabb Robinson

Henry Crabb Robinson (1775-1867) was a commentator on literature, politics and intellectual life of the first half of the nineteenth century. His diary records that he met Elizabeth Jesser Reid in London in 1838. Sharing a Unitarian faith, and an enthusiasm for educational reform, they became close friends.

Robinson originally worked as a solicitor’s clerk, but inherited a legacy that allowed him to devote his time to travel in Europe, where he studied under leading Romantic philosophers in Germany. On returning to London, he practiced as a barrister and participated in the founding of University College, London. He frequently visited the Lake District, forming friendships with the poets William Wordsworth and Robert Southey, as well as with Harriet Martineau. He chronicled these and other friendships in his extensive diaries, giving an unparalleled record of literary and social life in Britain and Europe. The Henry Crabb Robinson project estimate that his papers include the names of around 6,000 associates, including John Wesley, William Hazlitt, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Madame de Staël, Charles and Mary Lamb, William Godwin, Mary Hays, and Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

Robinson’s correspondence with Reid demonstrates their shared interest in education and reform causes, as well as Robinson’s frank admissions of fears for his health and future, which show their intimate friendship. Robinson gives his opinions on US slavery and the US Civil War, as well as European politics. He also encouraged Reid through Bedford College’s difficult early years, reminding her of his own struggles with University College, London. Some more personal letters discuss the challenges of aging.

Robinson died in 1867 – a year after Reid - aged 91, having remained sound of mind until very close to his death despite his fears.