Carey, Henry

(?1693-1743)

   Carey's life and death are shrouded in mystery, but he is thought to have been the illegitimate son or grandson of George Savile, the first marquis of Halifax. Apparently he lived in poverty and committed suicide; a benefit performance for his widow and four small children was given at Drury Lane on 17 November 1743. He wrote the ballad "Sally in Our Alley" for a musical burlesque with the impossible title Chrononhotonthologos. His burlesque, The Dragon of Wantley, had a longer first run than John Gay's The Beggar's Opera. Of his theatre work, the best is said to be The Honest Yorkshire-Man (1735) (linking him with Yorkshire). His son's claim that Carey was the author of "God Save the King" has been disputed. The DNB has a complete list of Carey's works. Carey is the man who gave the nickname "Namby Pamby" to the English language in his poem by that name. Some of his other poems: "A Drinking-Song," "A Lilliputian Ode on Their Majesties' Accession," "Roger and Dolly," "Sally Sweetbread," "The Author's Quietus," "The Huntsman's Rouse," "The Maid's Husband."

   Sources: Dictionary of National Biography. Electronic Edition, 1.1. Oxford University Press, 1997. Encyclopædia Britannica Ultimate Reference Suite DVD, 2006. The Columbia Granger's Index to Poetry. 11th ed. The Columbia Granger's World of Poetry, Columbia University Press, 2005 (http://www.columbiagrangers.org). Faber Book of Nonsense Verse. Geoffrey Grigson, ed. Faber & Faber, 1979. The National Portrait Gallery (www.npg.org.uk). The New Oxford Book of English Verse, 1250-1950. Helen Gardner, ed. Oxford University Press, 1972. The Oxford Book of English Verse. Christopher Ricks, ed. Oxford University Press, 1999. The Oxford Companion to English Literature. 6th edition. Margaret Drabble, ed. Oxford University Press, 2000. The Oxford Nursery Rhyme Book. Iona Opie and Peter Opie, eds. Oxford University Press, 1955.