Henry George Liddell (/ˈlɪdəl/;^[a] 6 February 1811 – 18 January 1898) wasdean (1855–1891) ofChrist Church, Oxford,Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University (1870–1874), headmaster (1846–1855) ofWestminster School^[3] (where a house is now named after him), author ofA History of Rome (1855), and co-author (withRobert Scott) of the monumental workA Greek–English Lexicon,^[4] known as "Liddell and Scott", which is still widely used by students of Greek.Lewis Carroll wroteAlice's Adventures in Wonderland for Henry Liddell's daughterAlice.

Liddell received his education atCharterhouse and Christ Church, Oxford. He gained adouble first degree in 1833, then became a college tutor, and was ordained in 1838.^[5]

Liddell was Headmaster ofWestminster School from 1846 to 1855. Meanwhile, his life work, the greatlexicon (based on the German work ofFranz Passow), which he andRobert Scott began as early as 1834, had made good progress, and the first edition ofLiddell and Scott's Lexicon appeared in 1843. It immediately became the standard Greek–English dictionary, with the 8th edition published in 1897.^[5]

As Headmaster of Westminster Liddell enjoyed a period of great success, followed by trouble due to the outbreak of fever andcholera in the school. In 1855 he accepted the deanery of Christ Church, Oxford. In the same year he brought out hisHistory of Ancient Rome and took a very active part in the first Oxford University Commission. His tall figure, fine presence and aristocratic mien were for many years associated with all that was characteristic of Oxford life. Coming just at the transition period when the "old Christ Church," whichPusey strove so hard to preserve, was inevitably becoming broader and more liberal, it was chiefly due to Liddell that necessary changes were effected with the minimum of friction.

In 1859 Liddell welcomed the thenPrince of Wales when he matriculated at Christ Church, being the first holder of that title who had matriculated sinceHenry V.^[5] While Liddell was Dean of Christ Church, he arranged for the building of a new choir school and classrooms for the staff and pupils ofChrist Church Cathedral School on its present site. Before then the school was housed within Christ Church itself.^{[citation needed]}

In conjunction with SirHenry Acland, Liddell did much to encourage the study of art at Oxford, and his taste and judgment gained him the admiration and friendship ofRuskin. In 1891, owing to advancing years, he resigned the deanery. The last years of his life were spent atAscot, where he died on 18 January 1898.^[5] Two roads in Ascot, Liddell Way and Carroll Crescent honour the relationship between Henry Liddell and Lewis Carroll.

Liddell was an Oxford "character" in later years. He figures in contemporary undergraduatedoggerel:^[6]

I am the Dean, this is Mrs Liddell.
She plays first, I, second fiddle.
She is the Broad,
I am the High –

We are the University.

The Victorian journalist,George W. E. Russell (1853–1919), conveys something of Liddell's image:^[7]

The Vice-Chancellor who matriculated me [1872] was the majestic Liddell, who, with his six feet of stately height draped in scarlet, his 'argent aureole' of white hair, and his three silver maces borne before him, always helped me to understand whatSydney Smith meant when he said, of some nonsensical proposition, that no power on earth, save and except the Dean of Christ Church, should induce him to believe it.

Henry George Liddell was the author of

• A Greek-English Dictionary Based on the German Work of Francis Passow, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1843, and numerous editions of the same, including abridgments for student use, written withRobert Scott.
• A History of Rome from the Earliest Times to the Establishment of the Empire, vol. I & II, London: John Murray, 1855
• Life of Julius Caesar, New York: Sheldon & Co., 1860, excerpted from the Roman history.
• The Student's Rome: A History of Rome from the Earliest Times to the Establishment of the Empire, London: John Murray, 1865, excerpted from the Roman history and revised.

His father wasHenry Liddell,Rector ofEasington (1787–1872), the younger son ofSir Henry Liddell, 5th Baronet (1749–1791) and the former Elizabeth Steele. His father's elder brother,Sir Thomas Liddell, 6th Baronet (1775–1855), was raised to thePeerage asBaron Ravensworth in 1821.

His mother was the former Charlotte Lyon (1785–1871), a daughter ofThomas Lyon (1741–1796) (who was the youngest son of the8th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne) and the former Mary Wren (died 1811).

On 2 July 1846, Henry married Lorina Reeve (3 March 1826 – 25 June 1910). They were parents of ten children:

• Edward Henry Liddell – also known as Harry (6 September 1847 – 14 June 1911).
• Lorina Charlotte 'Ina' Liddell (11 May 1849 – 29 October 1930); marriedWilliam Baillie Skene in 1874.
• James Arthur Charles Liddell (28 December 1850 – 27 November 1853).
• Alice Pleasance Liddell (4 May 1852 – 16 November 1934), who was the inspiration for the children's bookAlice's Adventures in Wonderland. She married Reginald Gervis Hargreaves, a former student from Christ Church and an English cricketer, had three sons with two being killed in World War I.
• Edith Mary Liddell (Spring, 1854 – 26 June 1876).
• Rhoda Caroline Anne Liddell (1859 – 19 May 1949); she was appointed a Member of theOrder of the British Empire (MBE) in 1920 for her orthopaedic work atNetley Red Cross Hospital.^[8]
• Albert Edward Arthur Liddell (1863 – 28 May 1863); he died in infancy.^[9]
• Violet Constance Liddell (10 March 1864 – 9 December 1927); like her sister appointed MBE in 1920 for orthopaedic work at Netley.^[8]
• SirFrederick Francis Liddell (7 June 1865 – 19 March 1950): FirstParliamentary Counsel andEcclesiastical Commissioner. His son, Maurice Arthur Liddell, marriedAlix Kerr OBE (May 1907 – 6 July 1981), British writer who contributed to the Guiding and Girl Scouting.
• Lionel Charles Liddell (22 May 1868 – 21 March 1942); he was British Consul toLyon andCopenhagen.^[10][11]

Media related toHenry George Liddell at Wikimedia Commons

Wikiquote has quotations related toHenry George Liddell.

EnglishWikisource has original works by or about:

Henry George Liddell

• Two portraits,National Portrait Gallery

• 1811 births
• 1898 deaths
• People educated at Charterhouse School
• Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford
• Fellows of Christ Church, Oxford
• Deans of Christ Church, Oxford
• Head Masters of Westminster School
• British classical scholars
• 19th-century English Anglican priests
• Vice-chancellors of the University of Oxford
• Presidents of the Girls' Day School Trust
• White's Professors of Moral Philosophy
• Burials at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford
• Classical scholars of the University of Oxford
• Liddell family
• 19th-century British lexicographers

• Webarchive template wayback links
• Articles with Encyclopædia Britannica links
• Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica with Wikisource reference
• Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica
• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Use dmy dates from October 2021
• Use British English from June 2012
• All Wikipedia articles written in British English
• All articles with unsourced statements
• Articles with unsourced statements from December 2016
• CS1: long volume value
• Commons category link is on Wikidata