Alexander Chalmers

Alexander Chalmers (1759-1834). Portrait by Richard James Lane (1800-1872), circa 1825-1850. Courtesy Wikimedia Commons.

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Alexander Chalmers (29 March 1759 - 29 December 1834) was a Scottish biographer and editor.

Life

Overview

Chalmers was born in Aberdeen on 29 March 1759. He was educated as a doctor, but gave up this profession for journalism, and he was for some time editor of the Morning Herald. Besides editions of the works of Shakespeare, Beattie, Fielding, Johnson, Warton, Pope, Gibbon, Bolingbroke, he published A General Biographical Dictionary in 32 volumes (1812–1817); a Glossary to Shakspeare (1797); an edition of Steevens’s Shakespeare (1809); and the British Essayists, beginning with the Tatler and ending with the Observer, with biographical and historical prefaces and a general index. He died in London on 19 December 1834.

Youth and education

Chalmers was born at Aberdeen on 29 March 1759, the youngest son of James Chalmers, a learned printer, by his wife Susanna, daughter of Rev. James Trail, minister at Montrose; and grandson of Rev. James Chalmers, professor of divinity at Marischal College.

He earned a master of arts, probably from the University of Aberdeen.

Having received a classical and medical education he left his native city about 1777, and never returned to it.

Career

He had obtained the situation of surgeon in the West Indies, and had arrived at Portsmouth to join his ship, when he suddenly altered his mind and proceeded to London.

He soon became connected with the periodical press, and was appointed editor of the Public Ledger and London Packet. At this period he acquired considerable fame as a political writer. He contributed largely to the St. James's Chronicle and the Morning Chronicle, and for a while was editor of the Morning Herald. In 1783 he married Elizabeth, widow of John Gillett.

Chalmers was early connected in business with George Robinson, publisher, of Paternoster Row, whom he assisted in examining manuscripts offered for publication. He was also a contributor to the Critical Review and the Analytical Review. At this period he lived almost wholly with Robinson.

No man ever edited so many works as Chalmers for the booksellers of London. they included:

1. ‘A Continuation of the History of England,’ 2 vols. 1793, 2nd edit. 1798, 3rd edit. 1803, 4th edit. 1821.
2. ‘Glossary to Shakespeare,’ 1797.
3. ‘Sketch of the Isle of Wight,’ 1798.
4. An edition of the Rev. James Barclay's ‘Complete and Universal English Dictionary.’
5. An edition of ‘The British Essayists, with prefaces, historical and biographical, and a general index,’ 45 volumes; this series begins with the ‘Tatler’ and ends with the ‘Observer.’ The papers were collated with the original editions, and the prefaces give accounts of the works, and of the lives of such of the writers as are less generally known.
6. Lives of Burns and Dr. Beattie prefixed to their respective works, 1805.
7. An edition of Fielding's Works, 10 vols. 1806.
8. An edition of Warton's ‘Essays,’ 1806.
9. ‘The Tatler, Spectator, and Guardian,’ 14 vols. 1806.
10. An edition of Gibbon's ‘History,’ with a life of the author, 12 vols. 1807.
11. Prefaces to the greater part of the collection known as ‘Walker's Classics,’ 45 volumes 1808, and following years.
12. An edition of Bolingbroke's Works, 8 vols. 1809.
13. An edition of Shakespeare, with an abridgment of the notes of George Steevens and a life of Shakespeare, 9 vols. 1809.
14. Many of the lives in the ‘British Gallery of Contemporary Portraits,’ 2 vols. 1809–16. These memoirs, though short, are authentic and valuable.
15. An enlarged edition of Johnson's ‘Collection of the English Poets,’ with some additional lives, 21 vols. 1810.
16. ‘A History of the Colleges, Halls, and Public Buildings attached to the University of Oxford, including the Lives of the Founders,’ 1810.
17. ‘The Projector,’ 3 vols. 1811, a periodical containing essays originally published in the Gentleman's Magazine.
18. An edition of the autobiographies of Dr. Pocock, Dr. Twells, Bishop Pearce, Bishop Newton, and Burdy's life of the Rev. Philip Skelton, 2 vols. 1816.
19. ‘County Biography,’ 4 Nos., 1819.
20. The ninth edition of Boswell's ‘Life of Johnson,’ 1822.
21. A new edition of ‘Shakespeare,’ 1823.
22. Another edition of Dr. Johnson's Works, 1823.

During the largest portion of his life he resided near the Bank of England, and having, after his settlement in the metropolis, become a sincere member of the church of England, he was not only a constant attendant at divine service on Sunday, but for 30 years was scarcely ever absent from the Tuesday morning lecture of Rev. W. Wilkinson at the church of St. Bartholomew by the Royal Exchange.

Chalmers, who was a great friend of John Nichols, contributed many obituary notices, especially of printers and publishers, to the Gentleman's Magazine. Nichols stated that Chalmers was "a warm and affectionate friend and a delightful companion, being very convivial, and his conversation replete both with wit and information."

He made frequent visits to the libraries of the British Museum and of both universities. In 1805 he was elected a fellow of the Society of Antiquaries.

His wife died in June 1816. He died at his residence in Throgmorton Street on 10 December 1834, and was buried on the 19th in the same vault with his wife in the church of St. Bartholomew by the Royal Exchange.

Writing

Biographical dictionary

The work on which his fame as a biographer chiefly rests is his enlarged edition of the New and General Biographical Dictionary, which was 1st published in 11 volumes in 1761. Other editions of this useful compilation appeared in 1784 and in 1798-1810. The latter, in 15 volumes, was edited as to the 1st 5 by William Tooke, and as to the last 10 by Archdeacon Nares and William Beloe. Then followed Chalmers's edition, which is entitled The General Biographical Dictionary: Containing an historical and critical account of the lives and writings of the most eminent persons in every nation, particularly the British and Irish, from the earliest accounts to the present time.

The first 4 volumes of this work, in 8vo, were published monthly, commencing in May 1812, and then a volume appeared every alternate month to the 32nd and last volume in March 1817, a period of 4 years and 10 months of incessant labor and of many personal privations. The preceding edition of the Dictionary was augmented by 3,934 additional lives, and of the remaining number 2,176 were rewritten; while the whole were revised and corrected. The total number of articles exceeds 9,000.

For many years Chalmers was employed by the booksellers in revising and enlarging the Dictionary; but at the time of his death only about 1/3 of the work, as far as the end of the letter ‘D,’ was ready for the press.

A competent authority, Chancellor Christie, remarks that "Chalmers's own articles, though not without the merit which characterizes a laborious compiler, are too long and tedious for the general reader, and show neither sufficient research nor sufficient accuracy to satisfy the student."

Recognition

His papers are held at the National Library of Scotland.

His portrait has been engraved.

Publications

Non-fiction

• The General Biographical Dictionary. (32 volumes), London: J. Nichols, 1812-1817.
• A History of the Colleges, Halls, and Public Buildings, Attached to the University of Oxford: Including the lives of the founders. Oxford, UK: Collingwood, 1810.

Edited

• The British essayists; with prefaces, historical and biographical. (45 volumrs), London: J. Johnson, et al, 1802-1803; Boston: Little, Brown, 1855-1857.
• Robert Burns, The Poetical Works. (3 volumes), London: T. Cadell & W. Davies, 1804.
• James Beattie, The Minstrel; or, The progress of genius; with other poems. London: J. Mawman, 1805.
• Alexander Pope, The Works: In verse and prose. London: J. Johnson, 1806.
• Henry Fielding, The Works. (10 volumes), London: J. Johnson, 1806.
• The Spectator: A new edition, corrected from the originals. London: J. Johnson, 1808; New York: Appleton, 1864.
• The Works of the English poets: From Chaucer to Cowper. (21 volumes), London: J. Johnson, 1810.
• English Translations: From modern and ancient poems (3 volumes), London: J. Johnson, 1810.
• William Shakespeare, The Plays: Accurately printed from the text of the corrected copy left by the late George Steevens, esq. (9 volumes), London: J. Nichols, 1811.
• William Paley, The Works: With a life. (5 volumes), London: F.C. & J. Rivington, 1819.
• Samuel Johnson, A Dictionary of the English Language. London: F.C. & J. Rivington, 1820.
• Samuel Johnson, The Works. (12 volumes), London: S. & R. Bentley, for F.C. & J. Rivington, 1823.
• Edward Reynolds, The Whole Works ... to which is prefixed a memoir of the life of the author. (6 volumes), London: B. Reynolds, 1826.
• Edward Gibbon, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. London: Robinson, 1830.
• Minor English Poets, 1660-1780: A selection from Alexander Chalmers' 'The English Poets' (edited by David P. French). New York: B. Blom, 1967.

Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy WorldCat.

References

•  Cooper, Thompson (1887) "Chalmers, Alexander" in Stephen, Leslie Dictionary of National Biography 9 London: Smith, Elder, pp. 443-445 

Fonds

• Chalmers, Alexander at the National Archives

External links

Books

• Works by or about Alexander Chalmers in libraries (WorldCat catalog)

About

• Alexander Chalmers in the Encyclopædia Britannica
• Alexander Chalmers at Electric Scotland

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, the Dictionary of National Biography (edited by Leslie Stephen & Sidney Lee). London: Smith, Elder, 1885-1900. Original article is at: Chalmers, Alexander
 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, the 1911 Edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica. Chalmers, Alexander