Henry Fielding Dickens, 1868-10-15

Fonds

Reference Code: GBR/1936/THPP/DIC

Letter from Charles Dickens to his son, Henry Fielding Dickens

Scope and Contents

A letter from Charles Dickens to his son Henry Fielding Dickens written on Henry taking up a place at Trinity Hall. In the letter Dickens gives his son advice about how to live at University, how not to get into debt and how he should appreciate everything whilst he is in Cambridge. It includes a generous allowance of £250 a year “handsome for all your wants” and the news that he has ordered “3 Doz: Sherry, 2 Doz: Port, and 3 Doz: light claret to be sent down to you.. and 6 bottles of Brandy.”

Dates

Creation: 1868-10-15

Creator

Dickens, Charles John Huffam, 1812-1870 (novelist and journalist) (Person)

Biographical / Historical

Sir Henry Fielding Dickens K.C., (1849 – 1933) was the sixth son of Charles Dickens. He was named after one of the 18th-century writers whom Charles most admired, Henry Fielding. He read Mathematics at Trinity Hall (1868 -1872), and after a year, he was awarded a scholarship from Trinity Hall worth £50 a year. He was called to the Bar in 1873 and had a distinguished legal career. In November 1917, Henry became Common Serjeant of London, the second most senior judicial position at the Old Bailey, which he held until 1932. He was appointed as Knight Bachelor in 1922.