The ''Poly-Olbion'' is a

topographical poem Topographical poetry or loco-descriptive poetry is a genre of poetry that describes, and often praises, a landscape or place. John Denham's 1642 poem "Cooper's Hill" established the genre, which peaked in popularity in 18th-century England. Examp ...

describing

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

. Written by

Michael Drayton Michael Drayton ( – ) was an English poet who came to prominence in the Elizabethan era, continuing to write through the reign of James I and into the reign of Charles I. Many of his works consisted of historical poetry. He was also the fir ...

(1563–1631) and published in 1612, it was reprinted with a second part in 1622. Drayton had been working on the project since at least 1598.

Content

The ''Poly-Olbion'' is divided into thirty songs, written in

alexandrine Alexandrine is a name used for several distinct types of verse line with related metrical structures, most of which are ultimately derived from the classical French alexandrine. The line's name derives from its use in the Medieval French '' Ro ...

couplets, consisting in total of almost 15,000 lines of verse. Drayton intended to compose a further part to cover

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, but no part of this work is known to have survived. Each song describes between one and three counties, describing their topography,

tradition A tradition is a system of beliefs or behaviors (folk custom) passed down within a group of people or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common e ...

s and

histories Histories or, in Latin, Historiae may refer to: * the plural of history * ''Histories'' (Herodotus), by Herodotus * ''The Histories'', by Timaeus * ''The Histories'' (Polybius), by Polybius * ''Histories'' by Gaius Sallustius Crispus (Sallust) ...

. Copies were illustrated with

map A map is a symbolic depiction of interrelationships, commonly spatial, between things within a space. A map may be annotated with text and graphics. Like any graphic, a map may be fixed to paper or other durable media, or may be displayed on ...

s of each county, drawn by William Hole, whereon places were depicted

anthropomorphic Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics to ...

ally. The first book was accompanied by historical and philological summaries written by

John Selden John Selden (16 December 1584 – 30 November 1654) was an English jurist, a scholar of England's ancient laws and constitution and scholar of Jewish law. He was known as a polymath; John Milton hailed Selden in 1644 as "the chief of learned m ...

. Because of its length and its author's conflicting goals the ''Poly-Olbion'' was almost never read as a whole, but is an important source for the period nevertheless. Drayton strained to combine correct scientific information about Britain (mostly contained in Selden's commentary) with his desire to provide as many memorial anchors to the elusive ancient

Celtic Britons The Britons ( *''Pritanī'', , ), also known as Celtic Britons or Ancient Britons, were the Celtic people who inhabited Great Britain from at least the British Iron Age until the High Middle Ages, at which point they diverged into the Welsh, ...

, Druids, Bards, and

King Arthur According to legends, King Arthur (; ; ; ) was a king of Great Britain, Britain. He is a folk hero and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In Wales, Welsh sources, Arthur is portrayed as a le ...

as possible.Richard Utz, "Hic iacet Arthurus? Situating the Medieval King in Renaissance Memory," ''Studies in Medievalism'' 15 (2006), 26-40; "'There Are Places We Remember': Situating the Medieval Past in Postmedieval Cultural Memories," in ''Transfiguration'' 6.2 (2004), 89-108.

Bibliography

*William H. Moore,
Poly-Olbion Summary
' *Oliver Elton, ''Michael Drayton; a Critical Study, with a Bibliography''

References

{{reflist

External links

''Poly-Olbion''
in ''The Complete Works of Michael Drayton'', vol. 3 (London, 1876)
The Children's Poly-Olbion: A Heritage Lottery funded arts and education project introducing Drayton to children across the UK and commissioning new art work based on Poly-OlbionExeter University: Poly-Olbion Project
1612 poems 1622 poems British poems

Content

See also

Bibliography

References

External links