Montgomery, James (1771–1854)

Scottish poet and hymn-writer. In 1806 he produced his Wanderer of Switzerland and in 1810 published another volume of verse, The West Indies, appealing for the abolition of the slave trade. These were followed by The World Before the Flood 1812, Greenland 1819, a poem about the Moravian missions to Greenland, Songs of Zion 1822, and The Pelican Island 1826, written in imitation of Shelley; this is generally considered his best work.

Born in Irvine, Ayrshire, he took up journalism, editing the Sheffield Iris 1794–1825. He also wrote Lectures on Poetry and General Literature 1833 and many hymns.