Charles Kingsley (12 June 1819 – 23 January 1875) was a broad church priest of the Church of England, a university professor, social reformer, historian, novelist and poet. He is particularly associated with Christian socialism, Anti-Catholicism, the working men's college, and forming labour cooperatives, which failed, but encouraged later working reforms.
Apologia Pro Vita Sua (transl. 'A defence of one's own life') is John Henry Newman's history of his religious opinions, showing how his opinions had been formed and how they had led him from Anglicanism to the Catholic Church. It was originally published as a series of pamphlets in 1864 in response to an attack by Charles Kingsley against Newman's honesty. Though Newman's honesty had been widely questioned for years, the Apologia was immensely successful and cleared Newman's name. Newman published a revised version in 1865.
The Story of Perseus and the Gorgon’s Head is a short novel published in 1898 for the series Books for the Bairns. The story was edited by W.T. Stead and taken from Charles Kingsley, who originally wrote the story with the name Perseus, the Gorgon Slayer and published it in his book The Heroes, or Greek fairy tales in 1855.
Muscular Christianity is a religious movement that originated in England in the mid-19th century, characterized by a belief in patriotic duty, discipline, self-sacrifice, masculinity, and the moral and physical beauty of athleticism.
The movement came into vogue during the Victorian era as a method of building character in pupils at English public schools. It is most often associated with English author Thomas Hughes and his 1857 novel Tom Brown's School Days, as well as writers Charles Kingsley and Ralph Connor. American President Theodore Roosevelt was raised in a household that practised Muscular Christianity and was a prominent adherent to the movement. Roosevelt, Kingsley, and Hughes promoted physical strength and health as well as an active pursuit of Christian ideals in personal life and politics. Muscular Christianity has continued through organizations that combine physical and Christian spiritual development. It is influential within both Catholicism and Protestantism.