Lyte, Henry Francis

(1793-1847)

   Born at Ednam, near Kelso, Roxburghshire, Scotland, and orphaned young, he was educated at Portora (the royal school of Enniskillen) in Ireland, where he excelled in English poetry. He was ordained in 1818 and had two main curacies Lymington, Hampshire, and All Saints Church, Lower Brixham, Devonshire, where he served for twenty-five years. Never robust, he made frequent trips abroad and died at Nice, where he is buried in the English cemetery. He is commemorated by a tablet in the nave of Westminster Abbey. Although chiefly known as a hymn writer, he was a prolific poet; most of his verse was written while at Lymington. His three publications: Tales in Verse Illustrative of the Several Petitions of the Lord's Prayer, 1829. Miscellaneous Poems, 1868. Remains of the late Rev. Henry Francis Lyte, 1850. Some of his poems: "A Lost Love," "Declining Days," "On a Naval Officer," "Stay Gentle Shadow of My Mother Stay," "The Poet's Plea." Some of His hymns/poems: "Abide with Me," "Pleasant Are Thy Courts Above," "Jesus, I My Cross Have Taken," "Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven."

   Sources: Dictionary of National Biography. Electronic Edition 1.1. Oxford University Press, 1997. English Poetry: Author Search. Chadwyck-Healey Ltd., 1995 (http://www.lib.utexas.edu:8080/search/epoetry/author.html). English Poetry: L Bibliographic Entries. The University of Texas at Austin General Libraries. (http://www.lib.utexas.edu:8080/search/epoetry/biblio-L.html). Henry Francis LyteHis Life and Times (http://homepage.tinet.ie/Lyte, Henry Francistaghmon/histsoc/vol1/3lyte/3lyte.htm). Invisible Light: Poems About God. Diana Culbertson, ed. Columbia University Press, 2000. The National Portrait Gallery (www.npg.org.uk). Poemhunter (www.poemhunter.com). The Columbia Granger's Index to Poetry. 11th ed. The Columbia Granger's World of Poetry, Columbia University Press, 2005 (http://www.columbiagrangers.org). The Cyber Hymnal (http://www.cyberhymnal.org/index.htm). The Treasury of Religious Verse. Donald T. Kauffman, ed. Fleming H. Revell, 1962.