Sketch by Daniel Maclise, c.1830s. Courtesy The Walter Scott Digital Archive, Edinburgh University Library.

Leigh Hunt is perhaps best known today for two short poems, “Jenny Kissed Me” and “Abou Ben Adhem”. In his time, he was known as a leading figure in the Romantic movement, a friend and mentor of Keats and Shelley, a groundbreaking drama critic, the editor of the leading liberal journal of the day (the Examiner), and a political writer whose criticisms of the Prince Regent led to his imprisonment for libel. He also became known in his later years as the subject of a hostile caricature in Charles Dickens’ novel Bleak House.

Leigh Hunt is perhaps best known today for two short poems, “Jenny Kissed Me” and “Abou Ben Adhem”. In his time, he was known as a leading figure…

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Citation: Goldfarb, Sheldon. "Leigh Hunt". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 04 March 2011 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=2264, accessed 19 March 2024.]

2264 Leigh Hunt 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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