Henrietta Anne Huxley (née Heathorn; 1 July 1825 – 5 April 1914) was an English poet. Lines from her poem on the death of Robert Browning were inscribed on the tombstone of her husband, biologist Thomas Henry Huxley.
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Early life
Henrietta Anne Heathorn was born in the West Indies, the daughter of Sarah Henrietta Richardson (née Harris) and Henry Heathorn, a brewer. She was educated in Neuwied, Germany, where she developed the proficiency in German that she'd put to use in later life.
At 18, in 1843, she and her mother and half-sister joined her father in Australia, where he had established a brewery and sawmill. The following year, her half-sister, Oriana, married Sydney merchant William Fanning.
Marriage
Henrietta was keeping house for Fanning when she met Thomas Henry Huxley in July 1847, shortly after his arrival in Sydney. He was working as an assistant surgeon and zoologist on HMS Rattlesnake. They became engaged on their sixth meeting, though their engagement lasted eight years. They corresponded throughout.