Belloc, Hilaire, 1870-1953
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
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.
Collection is open for research.
Belloc family correspondence
This collection contains correspondence to and from members of French-born British author Hilaire Belloc's (1870-1953) family and extended family.
Collection is open for research.
Belloc Family Correspondence
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.
Collection is open for research.
Belloc Family correspondence
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.
Collection is open for research.
Belloc family correspondence
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.
Collection is open for research.
Hilaire Belloc correspondence
Documents the correspondence of French-born British author Hilaire Belloc (1870-1953).
Collection is open for research.
Herbert Family - Hilaire Belloc Correspondence
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.
Collection is open for research.
Hoffman Nickerson - Hilaire Belloc collection
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.
Collection is open for research.
Hilaire Belloc Papers
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.
Collection is open for research.
Hilaire Belloc papers
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.
Collection is open for research.
Joseph Parkes and Edward John Stanley correspondence
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.
Collection is open for research.