Charles Fielding

Henry Fielding Dickens, born in 1849, was the eighth of ten children of the renowned author Charles Dickens. He pursued a distinguished legal career, becoming a King's Counsel and later the Common Serjeant of London, an ancient judicial office. He was educated at Trinity Hall, Cambridge, where he studied mathematics and law, and was the only one of Charles Dickens's seven sons to attend university. His father initially considered naming him after Oliver Goldsmith but settled on Henry Fielding, a favored author of Charles Dickens. Dickens's legal career included notable cases, such as his spirited defense of Kitty Byron in 1902, which, despite a conviction, led to a reduced sentence due to public petition.

In his later years, Henry Fielding Dickens became known for his public performances of his father's works, particularly his readings. He would often imitate his father's style, even using his father's reading stand and a geranium, which was Charles Dickens's favorite flower. These performances were noted for their striking resemblance to his father's own readings and were undertaken in support of the Red Cross Society, raising significant funds. He was also a Life President of the Dickens Fellowship. He died in 1933, the last surviving child of Charles Dickens, after an accident involving a motorcyclist.

Born in London in 1849, Henry Fielding Dickens was named in honor of his father's preferred author, Henry Fielding. He received his early education at Wimbledon School and a boarding school in Boulogne-sur-Mer. Uniquely among his father's seven sons, Henry attended university, enrolling at Trinity Hall, Cambridge. There, he excelled in mathematics, graduating as a Wrangler, before turning his studies to law. His time at Cambridge was marked by a significant event where he shared news of a scholarship with his father, revealing a profound, albeit reserved, paternal affection.

Henry Fielding Dickens embarked on a successful legal path, being called to the bar in 1873 and appointed Queen's Counsel in 1892. He later became a bencher of the Inner Temple. His legal acumen was publicly recognized in his defense of Kitty Byron in a murder trial, where his vigorous advocacy contributed to a commutation of her sentence. He served as Recorder for Deal and Maidstone before ascending to the ancient and significant position of Common Serjeant of London in 1917. In this role, he presided over criminal trials at the Old Bailey for over fifteen years, retiring in 1932. He consistently declined opportunities for parliamentary election, prioritizing his legal profession.

Beyond his legal achievements, Henry Fielding Dickens maintained a strong connection to his father's literary legacy. He was a Life President of the Dickens Fellowship and became known for his public recitations of his father's works. At family gatherings and for charitable causes like the Red Cross Society, he would perform imitations of Charles Dickens's famous public readings. These performances were noted for their uncanny resemblance to his father's style, often incorporating personal touches like his father's favorite flower and reading stand. His efforts in support of the Red Cross raised substantial funds. He also authored memoirs, including 'Memories of My Father' and 'The Recollections of Sir Henry Dickens, K.C.', offering insights into his father's life and personality.

“Looking back now upon the years that are gone, I find that there are one or two scenes or incidents which arise with astonishing vividness to my mind that may be worth recording ... I hope it will not be thought that I tell this story vaingloriously, as it was but a small matter so far as I was concerned. Nothing is farther from my thoughts. I do so because it is typical of a strange reticence on [my father's] part, an intense dislike of 'letting himself go' in private life or of using language which might be deemed strained or over-effusive; though, as will be seen later, when he was deeply moved he was at no pains to hide the depth of his emotion. Thus it came about that, though his children knew he was devotedly attached to them, there was still a kind of reserve on his part which seemed occasionally to come as a cloud between us and which I never quite understood.”

“Capital! capital!”

“God bless you, my boy; God bless you!”

“You ain't a patch on your father.”

“I quite agree with you. What do you know of my father?”