Arthur Patchett Martin (18 February 1851 – 15 February 1902), was an Australian writer and literary critic. Martin was born in

Woolwich Woolwich () is a town in South London, southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was mainta ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

, England, the son of George Martin and his wife Eleanor, ''née'' Hill. The family migrated to Australia in 1852, arriving in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

that Christmas. Martin was educated at St Mark's School, Fitzroy and later matriculated at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

in February 1868. Martin worked in the post office from 1865 to 1883; however he was also a casual writer in this period. Having established the ''Melbourne Review'' with Henry Gyles Turner in 1876, Martin edited the publication for six years. Martin was a member of the Eclectic Association, fellow members included Theodore Fink, Arthur Topp,

Alfred Deakin Alfred Deakin (3 August 1856 – 7 October 1919) was an Australian politician who served as the second Prime Minister of Australia, prime minister of Australia from 1903 to 1904, 1905 to 1908, and 1909 to 1910. He held office as the leader of th ...

and David Mickle. In 1883 Martin moved to

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

amid controversy over his role as co-respondent in a divorce case; he became a journalist and wrote regularly for the ''

Pall Mall Gazette ''The Pall Mall Gazette'' was an evening newspaper founded in London on 7 February 1865 by George Murray Smith; its first editor was Frederick Greenwood. In 1921, '' The Globe'' merged into ''The Pall Mall Gazette'', which itself was absorbed i ...

''. Martin was the satirist of the 'Australasian Group' – who regarded themselves as exiles – but retained an interest in Australian literature and other affairs. One of Martin's most solid achievements was the publication of a work entitled "Australia and the Empire", specially dedicated to the First Lord of the Treasury, Mr. Balfour. The opening essay in this work, entitled "Robert Lowe in Sydney," formed the nucleus of the undertaking on which Martin later worked on—the complete political biography of Lord Sherbrooke. Among other literary efforts in London may be mentioned "Oak-bough and Wattle-blossom," the first of those collective stories by "Australians in England" of which there are now quite a series. "Over-the-Sea Stories for the Children of Two Worlds" a profusely illustrated gift-book, is also a collection by Martin. Martin married a widow, Harriette Anne Bullen (daughter of Dr John Moore Cookesley) on 11 January 1886 in London. Together they wrote verse and organised the publications of expatriate Australians in various periodicals. Martin's health deteriorated and he moved to

Tenerife Tenerife ( ; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands, an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. With a land area of and a population of 965,575 inhabitants as of A ...

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where he died on 15 February 1902. Martin was the first of

Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll ...

's correspondents to write and seek acquaintance with him based on admiration for his work, meaning especially the ''Cornhill'' essays. A sister, Letitia Hill Martin, who was also an accomplished writer, married the theatrical impresario Arthur Garner.

Bibliography

* ''Sweet Girl Graduate'' (1876) * ''Lays of To-day: Verses in Jest and Earnest'' (1878) * ''Fernshawe: Sketches in Prose and Verse'' (1882) * ''Australia and the Empire'' (1889) * ''True Stories from Australasian History'' (1893) * ''Life and Letters of the Right Honourable Robert Lowe, Viscount Sherbrooke'' (1893) * ''The Withered Jester and Other Verses'' (1895) * ''The Beginnings of an Australian Literature'' (London, 1898)

External links

Poems of Arthur Patchett Martin
at PoemHunter

References

*Suzanne G. Mellor,
Martin, Arthur Patchett (1851 – 1902)
, ''

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...

'', Volume 5, MUP, 1974, pp. 215–216. Retrieved 2 October 2013 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, Arthur Patchett 1851 births 1902 deaths 19th-century Australian writers People from the Colony of Victoria Australian non-fiction writers 19th-century Australian poets Australian literary critics