born Aug. 23, 1849, Gloucester, Gloucestershire, Eng.
died July 11, 1903, Woking, near London
British poet, critic, and editor.
After a tubercular disease forced the amputation of one foot and radical surgery on the other leg, Henley began writing free-verse impressionistic poems about hospital life that established his poetic reputation. They appeared in A Book of Verses (1888). His most popular poem, "Invictus" (1875), dates from the same period. He later edited several journals, the most brilliant of which, the Scots Observer (later the National Observer ), published the early work of Thomas Hardy , George Bernard Shaw , H.G. Wells , James M. Barrie , and Rudyard Kipling .