Cautionary Tales for Children

HILAIRE BELLOC was a writer and historian who was born in France on July 27, 1870, and died on July 16, 1953. Belloc also spoke in public, wrote poetry, sailed, satirized, wrote letters, served in the army, and worked for political change. His work was strongly affected by his Catholic faith. In 1902, Belloc became a naturalized British person, but he kept his French citizenship. He was President of the Oxford Union while he was at Oxford University. As a member of the British Parliament from 1906 to 1910, he was one of the few who was proudly Catholic. Belloc was known for getting into arguments, and he had a number of running feuds. He was also good friends with G. K. Chesterton and worked with him. "Chesterbelloc" was a nickname given to Belloc and Chesterton by their friend and regular debate opponent, George Bernard Shaw. Belloc wrote much more than just religious poems. He also wrote funny verse for kids. "Jim, who ran away from his nurse and was eaten by a lion," and "Matilda, who told lies and was burned to death" were two of his best-known and most-sold stories for kids. He wrote a lot of trip books and biographies of famous people, like The Path to Rome (1902).