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Last edited by Tom Morris
February 12, 2024 | History

Alfred Lord Tennyson

Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson, FRS, much better known as "Alfred, Lord Tennyson," was Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom during much of Queen Victoria's reign and remains one of the most popular poets in the English language.

Tennyson excelled at penning short lyrics, "In the valley of Cauteretz", "Break, Break, Break", "The Charge of the Light Brigade", "Tears, Idle Tears" and "Crossing the Bar". Much of his verse was based on classical mythological themes, such as Ulysses, although In Memoriam A.H.H. was written to commemorate his best friend Arthur Hallam, a fellow poet and fellow student at Trinity College, Cambridge, who was engaged to Tennyson's sister, but died from a cerebral hemorrhage before they were married. Tennyson also wrote some notable blank verse including Idylls of the King, Ulysses, and Tithonus. During his career, Tennyson attempted drama, but his plays enjoyed little success.

Tennyson wrote a number of phrases that have become commonplaces of the English language, including: "Nature, red in tooth and claw", "'Tis better to have loved and lost / Than never to have loved at all", "Theirs not to reason why, / Theirs but to do and die", "My strength is as the strength of ten, / Because my heart is pure", "Knowledge comes, but Wisdom lingers", and "The old order changeth, yielding place to new". He is the second most frequently quoted writer in The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations after Shakespeare.1

British Poet Laureate (1809–1892)

Born 6 August 1809
Died 6 October 1892

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  • Cover of: Prentice Hall Literature: Platinum

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  • Cover of: Poems
    First published in 1958 2 editions

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  • Cover of: Tales from Tennyson: Large Print

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  • Cover of: Enoch Arden. Traduit de l'anglais Par Em. Duglin

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  • Cover of: Idylls of the King

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  • Cover of: Idylls of the King: Poems Concerning the Legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, Complete and Unabridged

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  • Cover of: Child-songs
    First published in 1880 2 editions in 1 language

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  • Cover of: The princess: a medley

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  • Cover of: Tennyson's Idylls of the King

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  • Cover of: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the Lady of Shallot, the Lady of the Fountain, and other Classic Poems and Tales of Camelot

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  • Cover of: The works of Alfred Tennyson, poet laureate

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  • Cover of: Idylls of the King

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  • Cover of: Select poems: prescribed for the junior matriculation and for entrance into normal schools and faculties of education, 1914

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  • Cover of: In Memoriam
    First published in 2018 2 editions

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  • Cover of: Pearson Literature: California: Reading and Language

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  • Cover of: The Complete Works of Alfred Lord Tennyson; Volume 1

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  • Cover of: Poems; Volume 1
    First published in 2018 2 editions

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  • Cover of: In Memoriam. Annotated by the Author

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  • Cover of: The works of Alfred, Lord Tennyson, poet laureate

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  • Cover of: Works of Alfred Tennyson ...: Maud, and Enoch Arden. in Memoriam

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British Poet Laureate (1809–1892)

Born 6 August 1809
Died 6 October 1892

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February 12, 2024 Edited by Tom Morris Remove bad AKAs
September 13, 2023 Edited by Tom Morris merge authors
September 3, 2023 Edited by David Scotson Added new photo
March 21, 2022 Edited by JeneeWhitney merge authors
April 1, 2008 Created by an anonymous user initial import