Poet George Byron: biography and creativity

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

George Byron, whose photo and biography you will find in this article, is deservedly considered a great English poet. The years of his life - 1788-1824. The work of George Byron is inextricably linked with the era of romanticism. Note that romanticism arose in the late 18th - early 19th century in Western Europe. This direction in art appeared as a result of the French Revolution and the enlightenment associated with it.

Byron Romanticism

People who tried to think progressively were dissatisfied with the results of the revolution. In addition, political backlash intensified. Romantics as a result of this divided into two opposing camps. Some called on society to return to the patriarchal way of life, to the traditions of the Middle Ages, to abandon the solution of urgent problems. Others advocated the continuation of the cause of the French Revolution. They sought to bring into life the ideals of freedom, equality and fraternity. George Byron joined them. He sharply denounced the colonial policy pursued by the British government. Byron opposed the adoption of anti-peoplelaws and suppression of freedoms. With this, he caused great dissatisfaction with the authorities.

Life in a foreign land

In 1816 a hostile campaign began against the poet. He had to leave his native England forever. The exile in a foreign land actively participated in the struggle of the Greek rebels and the Italian Carbonari for independence. It is known that A. S. Pushkin considered the genius of this rebel poet. The Englishman was very popular with the Decembrists. Belinsky, an outstanding Russian critic, also did not ignore him. He spoke of Byron as a poet who made a great contribution to world literature. Want to get to know him better? We suggest reading a detailed biography of Byron.

The Origin of Byron

He was born in London on January 22, 1788. His lineage was high both from his father's side and from his mother's side. Both John Byron and Catherine Gordon came from the highest aristocracy. Nevertheless, the childhood of the future poet passed in conditions of extreme poverty.

The fact is that John Byron, an officer of the Guards (pictured above), led a very wasteful life. The father of the future poet squandered in a short time two large fortunes that he got from his first wife and from the second, the boy's mother. John had a daughter, Augusta, from his first marriage. She was raised by her grandmother, and only in 1804 did her friendship with her half-brother begin.

Early childhood

Parents separated soon after George's birth. My father went to France and died there. In a Scottish townAberdeen passed the early childhood of the future poet. Here he studied at the Grammar School. At the end of the third grade, a message came from England that George's great-uncle had died. So Byron inherited the title of Lord, as well as Newstead Abbey - a family estate located in Nottingham County.

Both the castle and the estate were in disrepair. There was not enough money to restore them. So George Byron's mother decided to rent out Newstead Abbey. She herself and her son settled in Southwell, located nearby.

What darkened Byron's childhood and youth?

Byron's childhood and youth were darkened not only by the lack of funds. The fact is that George was lame from birth. Doctors came up with various devices in order to cope with lameness, but it did not go away. It is known that Byron's mother had an unbalanced character. She reproached her son in the heat of quarrels for this handicap, which caused the young man deep suffering.

Training at Harrow

George in 1801 entered a boarding school in Harrow. It was intended for children of noble birth. Future diplomats and politicians were trained here. Robert Peel, who later became Home Secretary and later Prime Minister of England, was in the same class as the great poet George Gordon Byron. The biography of our hero continues with events in his personal life.

First love

At the age of 15, in 1803, Byron fell in love with Mary Chaworth. ithappened during the holidays. The girl was 2 years older than George. Together they spent a lot of time. However, this friendship was not destined to end in a wedding. Love for Mary for many years tormented the romantic soul of such a poet as Byron George Gordon. The short biography moves on to describe George's student years.

Student years

The young man in 1805 became a student at Cambridge University. The period of study in it was a time of pranks, enjoyment and fun. In addition, George was fond of sports. He was engaged in boxing, swimming, fencing, horseback riding. Subsequently, George Byron became one of the best swimmers in England. Interesting facts about him, isn't it? At the same time, he became interested in reading. Soon, many began to notice that Byron had a phenomenal memory. He was able to memorize whole pages of text.

First collections of poems

The young man published his first collection of poems while still a student in 1806. He called his book Flying Sketches. A year later, the second collection "Poems on various occasions" and the third - "Leisure hours" appeared.

"British Bards" by George Byron

A short biography introduces readers to the difficulties that the poet had to face throughout his life. In particular, an anonymous review appeared in the Edinburgh Review in 1808. In it, an unknown person mercilessly ridiculed the works of Byron. He wrote that he did not speak the language of fiction and advised him to study poetry rather than publishsloppy verses. George Byron responded by publishing The British Bards in 1809. The success of the work was enormous. The poem went through four editions.

The two-year journey that George Byron made

His brief biography is marked by a two-year journey, which Byron set off at the end of 1809. At that time, he completed his poem en titled "In the footsteps of Horace", and also created poetic travel notes. Travel greatly influenced the development of Byron's creativity and poetic gift. His path began with Portugal, after which George visited the island of M alta, Spain, Albania, Greece, Constantinople. In the summer of 1811, Byron returned to England. Here he learned that his mother was seriously ill. However, George failed to catch her alive.

Childe Harold's Pilgrimage

George retired to Newstead and set to work on his new poem, which he called "Childe Harold's Pilgrimage". However, when the work was completed, editor Murray put forward a demand to exclude stanzas of a political nature from the poem. George Byron, whose biography testifies to his love of freedom, refused to remake the work.

In the image of Childe Harold, Byron embodied the features of a new hero who is in irreconcilable conflict with morality and society. The relevance of this image ensured the success of the poem. It has been translated into almost all languages of the world. Soon the name of Childe Harold became a household name. Under himit means a person who is disappointed in everything, who protests against a reality that is hostile to him.

Activities in the House of Lords

He decided to defend his position not only in poetry. George Byron soon took a seat in the House of Lords, which the poet inherited. In England at that time, the Luddite movement became very popular, consisting in the protest of weavers against the weaving machines that appeared. The fact is that the automation of labor has left many of them without work. And for those who managed to get it, wages dropped significantly. People saw the root of evil in the looms and began to destroy them.

The government decided to pass a law according to which those who destroyed cars were to be sentenced to death. Byron made a speech in Parliament protesting such an inhuman bill. George stated that the state is called upon to protect the interests of citizens, and not a few monopolists. However, despite his protests, the law was passed in February 1812

After that, terror began in the country against weavers, who were condemned to death, exiled, imprisoned. Byron did not stand aside from these events and published his angry ode, in which the authors of the law were denounced. What did George Byron write during these years? A whole series of romantic poems came out from under his pen. Let's talk about them briefly.

Oriental Poems

George Byron has created a series of romantic poems since 1813. In 1813 appeared "Gyaur"and "Abydos Bride", in 1814 - "Lara" and "Corsair", in 1816 - "The Siege of Corinth". In literature, they are called "Oriental poems".

Unsuccessful marriage

English poet George Byron in January 1815 married Annabella Milbank. This girl came from an aristocratic patriarchal family. Byron's wife opposed his social activities, which clearly contradicted the course of the government. As a result, disagreements arose in the family.

The couple had a daughter in December 1815, who was named Ada Augusta. And already in January 1816, Byron's wife left Byron without explanation. Her parents immediately initiated the divorce proceedings. Byron at that time created several works dedicated to Napoleon, in which he expressed the opinion that, by waging war against Bonaparte, England brought a lot of grief to her people.

Byron leaves England

Divorce, as well as "wrong" political views, led to the fact that the poet began to be persecuted. The newspapers inflated the scandal to such an extent that Byron could not even just go out into the street. He left his homeland on April 26, 1816 and never returned to England. The last poem written in his native land was Stanzas to Augusta, dedicated to Byron's half-sister, who was his support all this time and supported George's creative spirit.

Swiss period

First, Byron intended to live in France, and then in Italy. However, the French authorities forbade himstop in cities, allowing only to pass through the country. So George went to Switzerland. He settled near Lake Geneva at Villa Diodati. In Switzerland, he met and became friends with Shelley. The period of residence in this country is from May to October 1816. At this time, the poems "Darkness", "Sleep", "Prisoner of Chillon" were created. In addition, Byron began writing another poem, "Manfred", and also created the third song of "Childe Harold". After that, he went to Venice.

Meet Guiccioli, participation in the Carbonari movement

Here there was an acquaintance with the Countess Guiccioli, with whom Byron fell in love. The woman was married, but she reciprocated the poet. Nevertheless, the countess soon left for Ravenna with her husband.

The poet decided to follow his beloved to Ravenna. This happened in 1819. Here he actively participated in the movement of the Carbonari, who in 1821 began preparations for an uprising. However, it did not start because some members of the organization turned out to be traitors.

Move to Pisa

In 1821, George Gordon moved to Pisa. Here he lived with Countess Guiccioli, already divorced by that time. Shelley also lived in this city, but in the autumn of 1822 he drowned. Byron from 1821 to 1823 created the following works: "Marino Faliero", "Sardanapal", "Two Foscari", "Heaven and Earth", "Cain", "Werner". In addition, he started his own drama called "Transformed Freak", which remainedunfinished.

Byron created the famous Don Juan between 1818 and 1823. This great creation, however, also remained unfinished. George interrupted his work in order to participate in the struggle for the independence of the Greek people.

Participation in the struggle for the independence of the Greek people

Byron moved to Genoa in the autumn of 1822, after which he departed for Missolonghi (December 1823). However, in Greece, as well as among the Italian Carbonari, there was a lack of unity among the rebels. Byron spent a lot of energy trying to rally the rebels. George did a lot of organizational work, trying to create a unified rebel army. The life of the poet was very tense at that time. Besides, he caught a cold. Byron wrote a poem on his 36th birthday called "Today I Turned 36".

Byron's death

He was very worried about the illness of Ada, his daughter. Soon, however, Byron received a letter informing her that she had recovered. George happily got on his horse and went for a walk. However, a heavy downpour began, which became fatal for the poet with a cold. George Byron's life ended on April 19, 1824.

Byron had a great influence on the world literature of the 19th century. There was even a whole trend known as "Byronism", which was reflected in the work of Lermontov and Pushkin. As for Western Europe, the influence of this poet was felt by HeinrichHeine, Victor Hugo, Adam Mickiewicz. In addition, Byron's poems formed the basis of the musical works of Robert Schumann, Hector Berlioz and Pyotr Tchaikovsky. To this day, the influence of such a poet as George Byron is felt in literature. His biography and work are of interest to many researchers.