The Recollections of Geoffrey Hamlyn

work by Kingsley

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July 13, 2026

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The Recollections of Geoffrey Hamlyn is a novel by Henry Kingsley, first published in 1859. The story is set in Australia, though it begins in Devon, England.12

The novel incorporates elements of adventure and romance, depicting the Australian colonial experience with themes of bushrangers, bushfires, floods, and interactions with Aboriginal peoples. It also includes aspects of cattle branding and horse galloping, alongside the potential for fortunes to be made. Kingsley, brother of the more famous Charles Kingsley, had himself spent time in the Australian goldfields before writing this novel.21

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Australian literature
The century after settlement
…known novel of Australia was Recollections of Geoffry Hamlyn (1859) by Henry Kingsley, brother of Charles Kingsley. When the action at last moves from Devon to Australia, the story transposes into heroic romance, and it too manages to incorporate the sensational possibilities of the colonial experience: bushrangers and bushfires, floods…
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…known novel of Australia was Recollections of Geoffry Hamlyn (1859) by Henry Kingsley, brother of Charles Kingsley. When the action at last moves from Devon to Australia, the story transposes into heroic romance, and it too manages to incorporate the sensational possibilities of the colonial experience: bushrangers and bushfires, floods…
Read More