Laurence Eusden (bapt. 6 September 168827 September 1730) was an English

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

who became Britain's youngest Poet Laureate in 1718.

Life

Laurence Eusden was born in Spofforth in the

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire was one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the riding was an administrative county named County of York, West Riding. The Lord Lieutenant of the West Riding of Yorkshire, lieu ...

in 1688 (date unknown) to the Rev. Laurence Eusden, rector of Spofforth, Yorkshire. Eusden was baptized on 6 September 1688. He received his education at

St Peter's School, York St Peter's School is a mixed-sex education, co-educational Private schools in the United Kingdom, private boarding and day school (also referred to as a Public school (United Kingdom), public school), in the English City of York, with extensive ...

, and at Trinity College,

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

. He became a minor fellow of his college in 1711, and in the next year was admitted to a full fellowship. Early on, Eusden had decided upon building a career through influence. For someone like him, well-educated, with a fellowship at Trinity, but without family money and without well-placed relations, there was no other way to advance in the world. He began to write, with the intention of using his ability to attract notice to himself. With a flattering poem on the

Duke of Newcastle Duke of Newcastle upon Tyne was a title that was created three times, once in the Peerage of England and twice in the Peerage of Great Britain. The first grant of the title was made in 1665 to William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Newcastle, Willi ...

's marriage he succeeded – he was made Poet Laureate in 1718 by Newcastle, the

Lord Chamberlain The Lord Chamberlain of the Household is the most senior officer of the Royal Households of the United Kingdom, Royal Household of the United Kingdom, supervising the departments which support and provide advice to the Monarchy of the United Ki ...

. Eusden, who was 30 years old at the time of his appointment, was also the youngest Poet Laureate. Eusden secured this post due to the death of the previous Poet Laureate, Nicholas Rowe, and the recommendation of

Joseph Addison Joseph Addison (1 May 1672 – 17 May 1719) was an English essayist, poet, playwright, and politician. He was the eldest son of Lancelot Addison. His name is usually remembered alongside that of his long-standing friend Richard Steele, with w ...

. Upon his appointment, Eusden produced Birthday and New Year Odes for 12 years. The last few years of his life were unhappy. He was ordained as a cleric in the 1720s, and assumed the office of rector of Coningsby,

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...

, but his elevation to Poet Laureate brought him derision from his social and literary peers. Eusden died at Coningsby on 27 September 1730. He was buried at his church, St Michael and All Angels, in Coningsby.

Poetry and criticism

Eusden's work is difficult to find. However, hi
''The Origin Of The Knights Of The Bath''
http://quartet.cs.unb.ca/tapor/cgi-bin/view-works.cgi?c=eusdenla.1564&pos=7 dedicated to the young William Augustus, later Duke of Cumberland, is available online. Its first 12 lines are reproduced below as an instance of Eusden's laudatory style: Though he produced many translations and gratulatory poems, Eusden's literary reputation is dominated by the satirical allusions of

Alexander Pope Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S. – 30 May 1744) was an English poet, translator, and satirist of the Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment era who is considered one of the most prominent English poets of the early ...

's satire '' The Dunciad'': e.g., "Know, Eusden thirsts no more for sack or praise; He sleeps among the dull of ancient days." In addition to Pope's skewering of Eusden's abilities,

Thomas Gray Thomas Gray (26 December 1716 – 30 July 1771) was an English poet, letter-writer, and classics, classical scholar at Cambridge University, being a fellow first of Peterhouse then of Pembroke College, Cambridge, Pembroke College. He is widely ...

, author of "

Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard ''Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard'' is a poem by Thomas Gray, completed in 1750 and first published in 1751. The poem's origins are unknown, but it was partly inspired by Gray's thoughts following the death of the poet Richard West in 1742 ...

", said that ''"Eusden set out well in life, but afterward turned out a drunkard and besotted his faculties".''

Notes

References

Otago U

archive of Lincolnshire-web

External links

*
THE ORIGIN OF THE KNIGHTS OF THE BATH
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eusden, Laurence 1688 births 1730 deaths 18th-century English poets British poets laureate People educated at St Peter's School, York People from Spofforth, North Yorkshire 18th-century English writers 18th-century English male writers English male poets