Burgess was born at 7 Lyndhurst Place,
Rotherham, to Alfred Burgess, a blacksmith from
Youlgreave,
Derbyshire, and Camilla Anna Peat, a cook from
Harthill, South Yorkshire. His father worked for the
Earl of Shrewsbury and accepted the Earl's offer to run a branch of the business,
Shrewsbury and Challinor Rubber Company, in London. The family moved to
Westminster,
London, around 1882. On 6 September 1911, on his 16th attempt, Burgess became the second person to swim across the English Channel, King
George V wrote: "I am commanded to convey to you the hearty congratulations of the King upon your determination and endurance in accomplishing the wonderful feat of swimming the Channel today." Burgess replied: "Your majesty's gracious message has touched me deeply. Its receipt has given me more pleasure than the accomplishment of the feat itself. I am proud to be an Englishman and your subject." Around the same time Burgess bought a summer home at
Cap Gris Nez near
Calais, as a summer base to train channel swimmers from 1922 to 1934, while his main residence was at
Clichy, Paris. In 1941 Burgess was taken prisoner by the Nazis and held in a prison camp
Frontstalag 142 in
Besançon, France. He was released later the same year. Burgess died on 5 July 1950, in the Levallois-Perret suburb of Paris, France. == In popular culture ==