James Montgomery

Edward Hardiman (University of Keele)

Ed. by Daniel Cook, University of Dundee
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.3: Scottish Writing and Culture, 400-present.
Vol. editors: Kate Ash-Irisarri (University of Edinburgh), Daniel Cook (University of Dundee), J. Derrick McClure (University of Aberdeen)

Dates

Born 4 Nov 1771
Died 30 Apr 1854

Places

Active in Scotland

Activities

Primary

Poet

Resources

James Montgomery (1771-1854) was a poet, hymn writer, and newspaper proprietor. Born in Irvine, Ayrshire, Scotland, to Irish Moravian parents, Montgomery was caught between a myriad of different cultures. He identified as a “Scotchman”, but, as he put it, “I ought to have been an Irishman, because both my parents were such; and I pass for an Englishman, because I was caught young and imported hither before I was six years old” (Knight, Life of Montgomery, p. 331). His Irish parents were John and Mary, two Moravian missionaries with his father serving as minister for the congregation of Irvine a few years before he was born. In 1777 James attended Fulneck school – its name deriving from a town of …

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2097 words

Citation: Hardiman, Edward. "James Montgomery". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 29 July 2020 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=14526, accessed 21 November 2024.]

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