Australian Dictionary of Biography

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The Australian Dictionary of Biography is Australia's pre-eminent dictionary of national biography. In it you will find concise, informative and fascinating descriptions of the lives of significant and representative persons in Australian history.

The ADB is produced by the National Centre of Biography at the Australian National University. 


* *Proposed ADB entries for people who died 1991-1995* *

Feature Article

Charles Dickens (1812–1870)

Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens (1812-1870), novelist, was born on 7 February 1812 in Portsmouth, England, son of John Dickens, a clerk in the Navy Pay Office, and his wife Elizabeth, née Barrow. Dickens received intermittent schooling and indifferent care from his parents who were once obliged to take up residence in Marshalsea prison for debt. First apprenticed to the law, he began writing unpaid pieces for popular journals. Sketches by 'Boz', Dickens's pseudonym, were published in two volumes in 1836 and...

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What’s New
19 December 2011

Biography Footnotes

Read the latest edition of the National Centre of Biography's newsletter, Biography Footnotes
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17 October 2011

Biography Footnotes

Read the latest edition of the National Centre of Biography's newsletter, Biography Footnotes
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27 June 2011

Biography Footnotes

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Born This Day

Arthur Percival (1879–1964)

Arthur Percival

Arthur Percival (1879-1964), surveyor-general, was born on 10 February 1879 at Dunedin, New Zealand, son of William James Sims Percival, draughtsman, and his wife Annie, née Bradley, both English born....

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