Charles Dawson Shanly

Charles Dawson Shanly

Charles Dawson Shanly was an Irish-born poet, artist and ballad writer who emigrated to Canada and then moved on to America where he remained until he died in 1875. He built a reputation as a poet with a graceful, charming style while living the quiet life of a modest gentleman. He never married. He was born on the 9th March 1811 in Dublin, the son of a member of the Irish bar. The family moved at least twice during Charles’s early years and he received a home education from an appointed family tutor by the name of Reverend Henry Carpenter. He also attended school in Waterford and then went on to Trinity College in Dublin. His BA course was interrupted for a year due to the need to attend his ailing brother, William, who was suffering from tuberculosis in the Cornish town of Penzance. Following his brother’s death, Charles returned to Trinity and completed his BA. Following this he was engaged as a civil servant with the Board of Public Works. His enthusiasm though lay in writing and, in 1849, he took up the editorship of a satirical magazine called Punch in Canada. His contribution of poetry, cartoons and articles was substantial and he continued with it until 1850. Seven years later he resigned from the Board of Works and moved to New York where he decided that journalism was his preferred career path. He wrote for a number of publications including the Atlantic Monthly and was instrumental in the creation of a witty journal, published weekly called Vanity Fair. Shanly soon became editor and contributed a series of articles poking fun at the US Army military tactics of General William Hardee during the Civil War. The series was called Hardee Made Easy. Charles Dawson Shanly died on the 15th April 1875, aged 64. His body was taken to the family estate in Ontario for burial.

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