Henrietta Elizabeth Marshall

Henrietta Elizabeth Marshall (usually credited as H. E. Marshall; 9 August 1867 – 19 September 1941) was a British author, particularly well known for her works of popular national history for children. She is best known for her 1905 work Our Island Story: A History of England for Boys and Girls.

Henrietta Elizabeth Marshall (usually credited as H. E. H. E. Marshall is famous for the aforementioned 1905 children's history of England, Our Island Story, illustrated by A. S. Forrest. In the USA the book was entitled An Island Story: A Child's History of England. The book was a bestseller, was printed in numerous editions, and for fifty years was the standard and much-loved book by which children learned the history of England. However a lot of this book is historically inaccurate and much of it uses Shakespeare's plays for historical sources; for example, the section on Richard III is really a summary of the play. The book went out of print in the 1960s, but in 2005, an alliance of the Civitas think-tank and various national newspapers reprinted it, with the aim of sending a free copy to each of the UK's primary schools. Readers of The Daily Telegraph contributed £25,000 to the cost of the reprint. In 2010, then British Prime Minister David Cameron cited Our Island Story as his favorite childhood book. Marshall; 9 August 1867 – 19 September 1941) was a British author, particularly well known for her works of popular national history for children. She is best known for her 1905 work Our Island Story: A History of England for Boys and Girls.