Skip to main content

Belloc, Hilaire, 1870-1953

 Person

Dates

  • Existence: 1870 - 1953

Biographical Note

The British writer Joseph Hilaire Peter Belloc was born in Celle Saint-Cloud, France on 27 July 1870. In 1896 he married an American, Elodie Hogan, with whom he had five children-three sons and two daughters: Louis (1897), Eleanor (1899), Elizabeth (1900), Hilary (1902) and Peter (1904). Belloc began his literary career with Verses and Sonnets (1895). He next publishedThe Bad Child's Book of Beasts (1896), a collection of nonsense verse that was so popular it sold out in four days. Belloc then produced a series of biographies that includedDanton (1899) andRobespiere (1901). In 1902 he publishedPath to Rome, which is perhaps his most representative work for its combination of Belloc’s love for travel, as well as his fierce Roman Catholicism. It recounts Belloc's journey on foot from Toul, France to Rome, Italy.

In 1906 Belloc was elected to the House of Commons as the representative for South Salford, a seat that he held until 1910. He left his political career to pursue journalism, founding the political journal,New Witness, with G.K. Chesterton. His political broadsides written with Chesterton and his brother, Cecil, were popularly known as the “Chesterbellocs.” Belloc also served as editor ofLand and Water, a journal devoted to the progress of the First World War, from 1914 to 1920. Elodie Belloc died in 1914, and Belloc’s eldest son, Louis, was killed in 1918 while serving in World War I. Belloc’s youngest son, Peter, a captain in the Royal Marines, would later die during World War II.

Belloc was decorated with the Grand Cross of the Order of St. Gregory the Great in 1934 by Pope Pius XI for his devotion to Catholicism as a writer. That same year, he was also awarded an honorary Master of Arts from Oxford University. Belloc published prolifically over the course of his life. He wrote 153 books of essays, fiction, history, biography, and poetry, as well as numerous articles for periodicals.

He continued to travel extensively until suffering a stroke in 1942. On 12 July 1953, Belloc accidentally fell into his fireplace while sleeping beside it. He was badly burned and died on 16 July 1953.

Sources:

A.N. Wilson. Hilaire Belloc: A Biography, Atheneum: New York, 1984.

Social Networks and Archival Context (SNAC) Identifier

Found in 11 Collections and/or Records:

Elodie Hogan Belloc correspondence

 Collection
Abstract

The collection contains the correspondence of Irish-American Elodie (Hogan) Belloc (1868-1914). The letters are primarily between Elodie and her husband, Hilaire Belloc, with some correspondence from her family and others.

Restrictions on access

Collection is open for research.

Dates: 1890-1914, undated; Majority of material found within 1897-1913

Belloc family correspondence

 Collection
Abstract

This collection contains correspondence to and from members of French-born British author Hilaire Belloc's (1870-1953) family and extended family.

Restrictions on access

Collection is open for research.

Dates: 1873-1947, undated; Majority of material found within 1912-1941

Belloc Family Correspondence

 Collection
Abstract

This collection contains correspondence to and from various members of the Belloc family including Hilaire Belloc; his wife, Elodie Belloc; his mother, Bessie R. Belloc; his sister Marie Belloc Lowndes; and Hilaire and Elodie's children, Louis, Eleanor, Elizabeth, Hilary and Peter.

Restrictions on access

Collection is open for research.

Dates: 1849-1976, undated; Majority of material found within 1900-1942

Belloc Family correspondence

 Collection
Abstract

This collection contains correspondence to and from various members of the Belloc family including Hilaire, his wife Elodie (Hogan), and their five children (in order of birth): Louis, Eleanor, Elizabeth, Hilary and Peter. It also contains a small amount of correspondence from non-family members, as well as a number of Belloc family administrative documents such as marriage certificates, licenses and passports.

Restrictions on access

Collection is open for research.

Dates: 1829-1963, undated; Majority of material found within 1902-1926

Belloc family correspondence

 Collection
Abstract

This collection contains correspondence to and from Hilaire Belloc, a late nineteenth and early twentieth-century French-born British author. It also includes a small number of Belloc's handwritten notes and correspondence between members of Reginald Jebb's family.

Restrictions on access

Collection is open for research.

Dates: 1858-1974; Majority of material found within 1922 - 1941

Hilaire Belloc correspondence

 Collection
Abstract

Documents the correspondence of French-born British author Hilaire Belloc (1870-1953).

Restrictions on access

Collection is open for research.

Dates: 1889-1948, undated

Herbert Family - Hilaire Belloc Correspondence

 Collection
Abstract

This collection contains correspondence from Hilaire Belloc to Auberon and Mary Herbert. It also includes history notes that Belloc composed for Auberon Herbert while tutoring him.

Restrictions on access

Collection is open for research.

Dates: 1917-1941, undated; bulk 1930-1941

Hoffman Nickerson - Hilaire Belloc collection

 Collection
Abstract

This collection contains correspondence from Hilaire Belloc to Hoffman Nickerson. It also contains one typescript of an article by Belloc, a typescript of an article by Jane Soames Nickerson about Belloc, and an unidentified manuscript of a fictional work. Finally, this collection contains two photographs of Belloc's boat.

Restrictions on access

Collection is open for research.

Dates: 1920-1942, undated

Hilaire Belloc papers

 Collection
Abstract

The papers document the personal and professional life of French-born British author Hilaire Belloc (1870-1953). Materials include manuscripts, articles, publications, lecture and research notes, maps, student papers, financial records, drawings and sketches, paintings, photographs, sketchbooks, and scrapbooks. Additional materials include a series of diaries by Hilaire Belloc, Elodie Hogan Belloc, and Elizabeth Hogan.

Restrictions on access

Collection is open for research.

Dates: 1834-approximately 1970; Majority of material found within 1907-1938

Hilaire Belloc Papers

 Collection
Abstract

The collection consists of manuscripts, publications, and printed materials from Belloc's nearly sixty years as a public intellectual. Also included are artwork and photographs of Belloc, various family members, and Belloc's King's Land estate. The collection also contains Belloc diaries, memoranda, notes, and bibliographies, as well as background materials that date back to 1694.

Restrictions on access

Collection is open for research.

Dates: 1694-2004; Majority of material found within 1895-1953

Joseph Parkes and Edward John Stanley correspondence

 Collection
Abstract

This collection contains correspondence between British political and election reformer Joseph Parkes (1796-1865) and British politician Edward John Stanley (1802-1869). It also includes a small amount of correspondence between Parkes and other correspondents.

Restrictions on access

Collection is open for research.

Dates: 1834 - 1860; Majority of material found within 1835 - 1843