Redemption
In the summer of 1962, Aldington and his daughter visited the U.S.S.R. as the guests of the Soviet Union of Writers. Aldington’s novels were hugely popular in the U.S.S.R., and were published in enormous editions. Unusually, Aldington was permitted to receive a portion of his royalties.
Within three weeks of his return to France, Aldington died of a heart attack on July 27, 1962, in Kershaw’s house, in Maison Sallé, and was buried in Sury-en-Vaux, Var. His death was noted, with mixed comments, by the British press.
Aldington’s reputation continued to recover following his death, in large part due to the work of Kershaw and Professor Norman T. Gates. In 1965, Kershaw and F.-J. Temple published Richard Aldington: An Intimate Portrait (Southern Illinois University Press), a collection of reminiscences by his friends. This included a bibliography of Aldington’s works, superseding the dated and incomplete bibliography published by Kershaw. In 1970, Kershaw also edited Richard Aldington: Selected Critical Writings 1928–1960 (Southern Illinois University Press).
Alister Kershaw & F.-J. Temple (Editors)
Richard Aldington: An Intimate Portrait
Carbondale, IL, Southern Illinois University Press, 1965
Alister Kershaw acted as secretary to Aldington and owned the house in Maison Sallé near Sury-en-Vaux, Var in which Aldington died. F.-J. Temple was a French poet and broadcaster, and a friend of Aldington. The contributors included Samuel Beckett, Larence Durrell, T.S. Eliot, Herbert Read, C.P. Snow, and Alec Waugh, amongst others.
Norman T. Gates
The Poetry of Richard Aldington; A Critical Evaluation and an Anthology of Uncollected Poems
University Park, PA, Pennsylvania State University, 1974
This volume collects 219 poems not included in The Complete Poems of Richard Aldington (Allan Wingate, London, 1948) and reviews the 32 volumes of poetry published by Aldington. This was the first major assessment of Aldington’s poetry to be published following his death.
Norman T. Gates
A Checklist of the Letters of Richard Aldington
Carbondale, Illinois: Southern Illinois University Press, 1977
In his checklist, Gates identified 7,254 letters addressed to 224 correspondents. Many more letters have since been located, most of which have been listed in the New Canterbury Literary Society Newsletter. This volume includes what was, as of the date of publication, the fullest biography of Aldington. The cover shows a photograph of Aldington in the U.S.S.R. in 1962.
Norman T. Gates (Editor)
New Canterbury Literary Society Newsletter
Haddonfield, New Jersey: Norman T. Gates, 2000
The New Canterbury Literary Society was formed in 1973 by Professor Gates to act as a clearing house for information, about Aldington, and to publish a quarterly newsletter. Gates edited the Newsletter until his death in 2010. It was subsequently edited by Andrew Frayn. The last physical issue was Vol. 43, No. 1, for Spring 2015. It has since been published in electronic format and can be found at nclsn.wordpress.com.
Charles Doyle
Richard Aldington: A Biography
Basingstoke, U.K., Macmillan, 1989
The first published full-length biography of Aldington, was written by Charles Doyle (1928-2016), a poet and Professor of English at the University of Victoria, British Columbia.
Norman T. Gates
Richard Aldington: An Autobiography in Letters
Philadelphia: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1992
In his last major work on Aldington, Gates published 154 letters from Aldington spanning his life, providing extensive new insights into Aldington’s life and literary career. This copy is inscribed by the editor.
Vivien Whelpton
Richard Aldington: Poet, Soldier and Lover 1911-1929
Cambridge, U.K., Lutterworth Press, 2019
Revised Edition
Whelpton’s biography provided significant new detail about Aldington’s personal life and his literary career. This volume follows Aldington up to the publication of Death of a Hero, the success of which was to change his life. The cover shows the photographic portrait of Aldington by Madame Yevonde in 1930 seen earlier in this exhibition. This copy is inscribed by the author.
Vivien Whelpton
Richard Aldington: Novelist, Biographer and Exile 1930-1962
Cambridge, U.K., Lutterworth Press, 2019
The second volume of Whelpton’s biography of Aldington follows Aldington through the success he enjoyed in the thirties and forties to the difficult times he faced in the fifties, and the revival in his fortunes before his death in 1962. The cover shows another portrait of Aldington by Howard Coster. This copy is inscribed by the author.
Miriam Benkovitz (Editor)
A Passionate Prodigality: Letters to Alan Bird from Richard Aldington, 1949-1962
New York, New York Public Library, 1975
Alan Bird was a British educator who initially approached Aldington regarding Aldington’s translations of Gérard de Nerval. He became an invaluable researcher for Aldington’s biography of T.E. Lawrence and remained a valued correspondent until Aldington’s death. Miriam Benkowitz (1911-1986) was Professor of English Literature at Skidmore College, and was the biographer of Ronald Firbank and of Frederick Rolfe, Baron Corvo.
Caroline Zilboorg (Editor)
Richard Aldington and H.D.: The Early Years in Letters
Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press, 1992
The letters detail the relationship between Aldington and H.D. from 1918, when Aldington had been promoted to an officer in the British army through of the development his affair with Dorothy (“Arabella”) York and up to 1920. Zilboorg, who has written extensively on Aldington and H.D., notes that despite Aldington having burned much of their correspondence, 1,200 letters between the pair survive. The photograph on the front cover shows Aldington and H.D. in London in 1917 or 1918.
Caroline Zilboorg (Editor)
Richard Aldington and H.D.: The Later Years in Letters
Manchester, U.K., Manchester University Press, 1995