Henry and Bertha Lawson were married on 15 April 1896. Henry was 28 and Bertha was 19 years of age. Throughout their time together in England from 1900-1902, the marriage was difficult. Upon their return to Australia in mid-1902, they separated but there followed a period of reunion-separation-reunion and further separation. Eventually, an official, judicial separation was granted on 4 June 1903. The marriage had barely lasted seven years. At the time of the separation, Henry and Bertha had two young children—Jim was 5 and Barta was 3. Throughout these difficult times, Henry Lawson penned a number of works that provide revealing insights into how he was feeling.

Lawson works discussed in the episode:

After All. Originally published in The Bulletin, 28 March 1896. Collected in Selected Poems of Henry Lawson (November 1918).

That Pretty Girl in the Army. Published in Children of the Bush (July 1902).

To Hannah. Originally published in The Bulletin, 1 September 1904. Collected in When I Was King and Other Verses (November 1905).

The Secret Whiskey Cure. Originally published in The Bulletin, 22 September 1904. Collected in When I Was King and Other Verses (November 1905).

To Jim. Originally published in The Bulletin, 9 March 1905. Collected in When I Was King and Other Verses (November 1905).

The Separation. Published in When I Was King and Other Verses (November 1905).

Hannah Thomburn. Published in For Australia and Other Poems (October 1913).

The Separated Women. Published in For Australia and Other Poems (October 1913).

Exit. Originally written 1903, but not published until after Lawson’s death. Collected in Colin Roderick (ed.) Henry Lawson: Collected Verse, Vol. 2: 1901-1909 (1968).