Francis Ridley Havergal

Born in Worcestershire, England, on December 14, 1836, Francis Ridley Havergal was the daughter of a rector of the Anglican Church, who happened to also be adept musician. Havergal was already reading the Bible by age four, and was soon studying French and music as well. She was confirmed at Worcester Cathedral as a young adult, and from then on consecrated her life to Christ, following both a rigorous personal devotional life and an active participation in her church. A prolific song-writer who gained some renown, she donated the money from the sale of her poems and hymns to charitable institutions both in England and elsewhere. She never married and died in 1879, at the age of forty-three.