Tag: poets

Portrait of a young man with dark hair wearing 18th-century clothing, a dark coat and a buff waistcoat
History of Parliament Trust, 18th Century history, Elections, Factions, George III, Georgian, Georgian Lords, Military history, Parties, Scottish History, Social history

Robert Burns in Edinburgh: peers, patrons, and politics

In the wake of Burns Night, it is worth considering how the patronage of a small number of Scottish nobles helped Robert Burns become established as the national bard. In his latest piece for the Georgian Lords, Dr Charles Littleton, considers the important role played by a clutch of elite Scots families. Burns first published his Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect, in Kilmarnock in … Continue reading Robert Burns in Edinburgh: peers, patrons, and politics

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Conferences, Seminars and Events, 17th Century history, Parliamentary Life, Social history, Stuart

Parliaments, politics and people seminar: Paul Seaward, Mr Marvell goes to Westminster: the poet as parliament-man

At our latest ‘Parliaments, Politics and People’ Seminar, our Director, Dr Paul Seaward, spoke on ‘Mr Marvell goes to Westminster: the poet as parliament-man.’ Here he gives an overview of his paper… If poets are the unacknowledged legislators of mankind, it comes as a surprise how many acknowledged poets have been proper legislators. In the seventeenth century, John Donne, Edmund Waller, Sir John Denham and … Continue reading Parliaments, politics and people seminar: Paul Seaward, Mr Marvell goes to Westminster: the poet as parliament-man

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Social history, 16th Century history, 19th Century history, Medieval

Poetry in Parliament

Today is National Poetry Day, a chance to celebrate poetry across the country (for more, visit http://www.forwardartsfoundation.org/national-poetry-day/). You may not know that over the centuries many poets also sat in the House of Commons. Some were the greats, such as Geoffrey Chaucer  (MP for Kent  in the ‘Wonderful Parliament’ of 1386) or the metaphysical poet John Donne (elected in 1601 and 1614). Others history has … Continue reading Poetry in Parliament

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