Lord Alfred Tennyson was the 1st Barron Tennyson as well as a Poet Laureate for the United Kingdom. He was born Somersby on August 6th 1809 and died on October 6th 1892. From all of the Victorian Era writers, Lord Tennyson was most known for his work, Idylls of the King which was a revival of the legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table.
In general, most of Tennyson’s works were based on mythology except for one which was considered to be a memoriam that he had written in commemoration of his close friend Arthur Hallam whom he met while in attendance at Trinity College in Cambridge.
Lord Tennyson did at one point attempt to write a dramatic play, but unfortunately he had discovered that his talents for the dramatics were not up to par and saw no real success. Furthermore, his writings have included phrases which have now become a common place in today’s English including, "better to have loved and lost". He is also the second most quoted person in the Oxford Dictionary followed closely behind William Shakespeare.
Alfred did not grow up in the lap of luxury. As a matter of fact, his father was merely a rector. But that did not stop his family to attempt to live more of a posh lifestyle. His father on a number of occasions tried his hand at varying forms of art including painting and architecture. It was his father, whose ability to manage the family’s money, which allowed them to take a yearly vacation as well as afford his college and the upbringing of his 11 siblings.
It was in 1828, when Alfred Tennyson would start his studies at the Trinity College at Cambridge. During his term at the university, he managed to join a secret society which was known as the Cambridge Apostles. Alfred’s brother was also well versed in poems and the two brothers got together while Alfred was in attendance at Trinity to publish their first book entitled, Poems by Two Brothers.
By 1829, Alfred Tennyson was given the prestigious Chancellor's Gold Medal at Cambridge, for one of his first pieces of literature, and soon after he would publish his first solo poem collection which would become considered as the most celebrated works of his lifetime. Especially noteworthy poems in this fist solo collection were the poems, Mariana and Claribel.
It was in 1831, during the spring when Alfred’s father passed away which led to Tennyson leaving school and sharing in the responsibilities with his mother who was left to take care of his remaining siblings. Only two years after the death of his father, Alfred Tennyson would publish his second book which also contained a poem which has since become well-known which was entitled, The Lady of Shalott.
For the next 10 years, Although Tennyson would continue to write, he did not publish any of his works. That was until his closest friend, Arthur Hallam, while on vacation in Vienna, suffered a cerebral hemorrhage. Although this event devastated Alfred, he was able to build up enough strength to write his memoriam to Arthur. After that he went for almost another ten years before publishing again.
By 1842, Tennyson was ready to return to publish his third work which was contained in two volumes. The first volume was just a re-release of several of his older poems that had been successful, but the second was filled with many new works. This third book was to be very successful from the moment it was published. In this book, one can find such great poems as Ulysses, Tithonus as well as Locksley Hall.
The pinnacle of Alfred Tennyson’s career occurred in 1850 when he published his masterpiece In Memoriam A.H.H, which was written shortly after the death of his closest friend Arthur Hallam, but never published until then. It was this memoriam that gave him the fame he needed to get the position as Poet Laureate. His success also led him to marry his childhood sweetheart later that same year. His wife, Emily Sellwood, gave him two sons, of which the first was named in recognition of his closest friend.
Alfred Tennyson maintained his appointment of the Poet Laureate for the United Kingdom until his death. He wrote many poems which were considered to be both mediocre as well as completely appropriate. During the Crimean War, a troop of British Cavalrymen were sent to battle on October 25th 1854, this was a bad mistake and many men died. In a tribute to these men, Lord Alfred Tennyson wrote one of his most well-known works produced during his appointment as Laureate which was entitled, The Charge of the Light Brigade.
It was Queen Victoria whose admiration of Alfred’s works of literature that would appoint him Baron of Tennyson in 1884. His official title was Baron Tennyson, of Aldworth in the County of Sussex and of Freshwater in the Isle of Wight. Although appointed this position officially in 1865 as well as 1868, he finally accepted it in 1883 and took his seat in the House of Lords until his death.
Original Authors: Globel Team (Nick)
Edit Update Authors: M.A.Harris
Updated On: 22/05/2008
