William Wordsworth
On April 7, 1770, William Wordsworth was born in Cockermouth, Cumbria, England. Wordsworth attended Hawkshead Grammar School, where his love of poetry was firmly established and, it is believed, he made his first attempts at verse. After Hawkshead, Wordsworth studied at St. John's College in Cambridge and before his final semester, he set out on a walking tour of Europe, an experience that influenced both his poetry and his political sensibilities. While touring Europe, Wordsworth came into contact with the French Revolution. This experience as well as a subsequent period living in France, brought about Wordsworth's interest and sympathy for the life, troubles and speech of the "common man". These issues proved to be of the utmost importance to Wordsworth's work. Wordsworth's earliest poetry was published in 1793 in the collections An Evening Walk and Descriptive Sketches. Later in his life, William Wordsworth wrote his most famous work, The Prelude. It is often considered to be the crowning achievement of English romanticism. The poem was revised numerous times. Wordsworth spent his final years settled at Rydal Mount in England, travelling and continuing his outdoor excursions. Devastated by the death of his daughter Dora in 1847, Wordsworth seemingly lost his will to compose poems. William Wordsworth died at Rydal Mount on April 23, 1850, leaving his wife Mary to publish The Prelude three months later.
COCKERMOUTH, ENGLAND
Cockermouth is just three miles from Crummock Water and the dramatic Lakeland mountains. Cockermouth is a thriving market town with medieval and Georgian streets beneath the castle walls.
COCKERMOUTH, ENGLAND
Cockermouth is just three miles from Crummock Water and the dramatic Lakeland mountains. Cockermouth is a thriving market town with medieval and Georgian streets beneath the castle walls.