Gibbon, Perceval, 1879-1926

Perceval Gibbon, author and journalist, was born in Trelech, Wales, on November 4, 1879. He was the eldest son of the Rev. J. Morgan Gibbon, and was educated in the Moravian School, Königsfeld, Baden, Germany. Gibbon served in the merchant navy aboard British, French, and American ships, and travelled extensively throughout Europe, America, and Africa. His early works, particularly The Vrouw Grobelaar's Leading Cases (1905) and Souls in Bondage (1904), were influenced by his travels.

Gibbon's literary agency was J. B. Pinker and Son, and several of his short stories were published in British and American magazines such as McClure's Magazine and Collier's Weekly. Other works of Gibbon's that were published in book form include a collection of verse, African Items (1903); novels, Salvator (1908) and Margaret Harding (1911); short stories, The Adventures of Miss Gregory (1912), The Second-Class Passenger (1913), Those Who Smiled (1920), and The Dark Places (1926).

In addition to writing fiction, Gibbon was a war correspondent with the Italian Army for the New York Times during 1917 and 1918. He reported from the Isonzo, the Plave, the Carso, and elsewhere along the Italian front. In 1918 and 1919 he served as a Major in the Royal Marines.

Perceval Gibbon died in 1926.