WRITER

George Herbert

1593 - 1633

Photo of George Herbert

Icon of person George Herbert

George Herbert (3 April 1593 – 1 March 1633) was an English poet, orator, and priest of the Church of England. His poetry is associated with the writings of the metaphysical poets, and he is recognised as "one of the foremost British devotional lyricists." He was born in Wales into an artistic and wealthy family and largely raised in England. He received a good education that led to his admission to Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1609. He went there with the intention of becoming a priest, but he became the University's Public Orator and attracted the attention of King James I. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of George Herbert has received more than 1,026,368 page views. His biography is available in 36 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 32 in 2019). George Herbert is the 2,810th most popular writer (up from 2,925th in 2019), the 2,088th most popular biography from United Kingdom (up from 2,201st in 2019) and the 232nd most popular British Writer.

Memorability Metrics

  • 1.0M

    Page Views (PV)

  • 53.48

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 36

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 2.79

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 4.48

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

Notable Works

The Time Machine
Self-experimentation in medicine in fiction, Fiction in English, Fiction
The Time Traveller, a dreamer obsessed with traveling through time, builds himself a time machine and, much to his surprise, travels over 800,000 years into the future. He lands in the year 802701: the world has been transformed by a society living in apparent harmony and bliss, but as the Traveler stays in the future he discovers a hidden barbaric and depraved subterranean class. Wells's transparent commentary on the capitalist society was an instant bestseller and launched the time-travel genre.
1895
The History of Mr. Polly
Classic Literature, Fiction, Wit & Humor
H. G. Wells' comic 1910 novel, The History of Mr. Polly, stars Alfred Polly, a timid man who is more successful at daydreaming than working in the local draper's shops. He marries a woman he's not really in love with, despite being in love with another, and together they attempt to create a success of their own shop while slowly making one another miserable. But on the night of a fire everything changes in Mr. Polly's life.
1900
Tono-Bungay
Fiction, Patent medicines, Pharmaceutical industry
George Ponderovo's quiet young life is changed forever when he is forced to leave home and is apprenticed to his dynamic Uncle Edward in his chemist's shop. Edward, determined to "strike out", invents a bogus medicine called Tono-Bungay which earns him a vast fortune. George's share of the wealth enables him to live out his fantasies by building an aeroplane. As he witnesses the spectacular rise of the Tono-Bungay empire he contemplates a corrupt English society that allows his uncle to wield so much power. Tono-Bungay (1909) is widely regarded as Wells's finest novel, combining futuristic science fiction and contemporary social satire. His scathing account of Edwardian London remains as relevant today as when it was first published. No other writer has the breadth of Wells to encompass both George's personal breakdown and the full panorama of a degenerate imperial society. This is the only popular edition of the text to included Wells's final revisions. The notes explain his multi-layered allusions, and the Introduction places the nove in its literary and historical context. - Back cover.
1890
The invisible man
Ciencia-ficción, Classic Literature, Fiction
This book is the story of Griffin, a scientist who creates a serum to render himself invisible, and his descent into madness that follows.
1897
The War of the Worlds
Science Fiction & Fantasy, Fiction in English, Fiction
The ultimate science fiction classic: for more than one hundred years, this compelling tale of the Martian invasion of Earth has enthralled readers with a combination of imagination and incisive commentary on the imbalance of power that continues to be relevant today. The style is revolutionary for its era, employing a sophisticated first and third person account of the events which is both personal and focused on the holistic downfall of Earth's society. The Martians, as evil, mechanical and unknown a threat they are, remain daunting in today's society, where, despite technology's mammoth advances, humanity's hegemony over Earth is yet to be called into question. In Well's introduction to the book, where the character discusses with the later deceased Ogilvy about astronomy and the possibility of alien life defeating the 'savage' (to them) nineteenth-century Britain, is he insinuating that this is the truth and fate of humanity? It's up to you to decide....
1898
Island of Doctor Moreau
Fiction, Animal experimentation, Survival after airplane accidents, shipwrecks
1896

Among WRITERS

Among writers, George Herbert ranks 2,810 out of 7,302. Before him are Moderata Fonte, Apostolo Zeno, Marija Jurić Zagorka, Louis of Granada, Unica Zürn, and Gunnar Staalesen. After him are Branko Radičević, Luis Cernuda, Theodore Balsamon, Abraham Sutzkever, John Webster, and Aleksandër Stavre Drenova.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1593, George Herbert ranks 12. Before him are Nicolaes Tulp, George I Rákóczi, Matthäus Merian, Balthasar van der Ast, Catherine de' Medici, Governor of Siena, and Anthony van Diemen. After him are William, Margrave of Baden-Baden, Sultan Agung of Mataram, Jean de Brébeuf, Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford, Elisabeth of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Duchess of Saxe-Altenburg, and Izaak Walton. Among people deceased in 1633, George Herbert ranks 12. Before him are Patriarch Filaret of Moscow, Xu Guangqi, Catherine of Cleves, Catherine Henriette de Balzac d'Entragues, Lew Sapieha, and Christian, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg. After him are Sigrid of Sweden, Archduchess Margaret of Austria, Juan Pablo Bonet, John Casimir, Duke of Saxe-Coburg, Magdalene of Jülich-Cleves-Berg, and Francis Godwin.

Others Born in 1593

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Others Deceased in 1633

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In United Kingdom

Among people born in United Kingdom, George Herbert ranks 2,088 out of 8,785. Before him are Joan of the Tower (1321), Chris Menges (1940), Thomas Andrews (1813), Robert Fortune (1812), Anthony Dawson (1916), and Alan Lancaster (1949). After him are John Webster (1578), James Fox (1939), John Foxe (1516), Andrew Ridgeley (1963), Edmund Tudor, Duke of Somerset (1499), and Mary Anne MacLeod Trump (1912).

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Among WRITERS In United Kingdom

Among writers born in United Kingdom, George Herbert ranks 232. Before him are Thomas Kyd (1558), Samuel Smiles (1812), Robert Holdstock (1948), Josephine Tey (1896), Marion Chesney (1936), and James Herriot (1916). After him are John Webster (1578), Joseph Delaney (1945), Irvine Welsh (1957), Anthony Horowitz (1955), Michael Bond (1926), and John Fletcher (1579).

British born Writers

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