Henry Williamson

Henry Williamson (1895 – 1977) was born in London and educated at Colfe’s Grammar School in Lewisham. His experiences during the First World War (1914 – 18) cast a shadow over the rest of his life. He had witnessed the moment of near-friendship between the English and German troops when they played football together on Christmas Day 1914, and this changed his outlook on life and on war. For the rest of his life he hoped for a united Europe.

Before his war experiences, Henry Williamson was passionate about wildlife, and this feeling resulted in his stories of the creatures of the English countryside. His best-remembered book, Tarka the Otter, was published in 1927 and won the Hawthornden Prize. He thought it the least important part of his work but it was the book that made him widely known.

Henry Williamson was also a farmer, reclaiming derelict land, building barns, cottages and roads, and planting trees in both Norfolk and Devon. He married twice and was the father of eight children.