A Short Biographical Dictionary of English Literature/Aikin, Lucy

by John William Cousin

Aikin, Lucy (1781–1864).—Historical and miscellaneous writer, dau. of above and niece of Mrs. Barbauld (q.v.). After pub. a poem, Epistles on Women, and a novel, Lorimer, she began the historical works on which her reputation chiefly rests, viz., Memoirs of the Courts of Elizabeth, James I., and Charles I. (1818–33) and a Life of Addison. She also wrote lives of her father and of Mrs. Barbauld. She was remarkable for her conversational powers, and was also an admirable letter-writer. Like the rest of her family she was a Unitarian.