Leigh Hunt
(1784-1859), Poet, essayist and criticJames Henry Leigh Hunt
Regency Portraits Catalogue Entry
Sitter associated with 11 portraits
A poet and essayist best known for his promotion of younger writers such as Keats and Shelley. In 1808, he established a political periodical called the Examiner. Celebrated for its reformist line, the Examiner also promoted the work of Keats, Shelley, Charles Lamb and William Hazlitt. It deliberately antagonised the government and in 1812, after a string of libel charges, Hunt and his brother John were sentenced for an article criticising the Prince Regent. Although the Examiner continued in production from his prison cell, it lost momentum after the his release. In 1822, Leigh Hunt travelled to Italy with Shelley and Byron and founded a short-lived radical journal called The Liberal.
by Thomas Charles Wageman
pencil, 1815
NPG 4505
by Samuel Laurence
oil on canvas, circa 1837
NPG 2508
by Margaret Gillies
watercolour and gouache on ivory, 1838-1846
NPG 1267
by John Carr (or James Charles) Armytage, published by Smith, Elder & Co, after Joseph Severn
stipple engraving, (circa 1810)
NPG D15734
by Unknown artist
watercolour, 1820s-1830s
NPG D5600
by Henry Meyer, after John Hayter
line engraving, published 1828
NPG D3289
by Unknown artist
lithograph, mid 19th century
NPG D36389
by Daniel Maclise
lithograph, published 1873
NPG D3288
Probably Leigh Hunt, formerly called Percy Bysshe Shelley
by Ellen Maurice ('Nellie') Heath, after William Edward West
oil on board
NPG D42249
by Samuel Freeman, after William Mineard Bennett
stipple engraving, circa 1805
NPG D11203
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