Edmund Spenser (c. 1552 – 13 January 1599) was an English poet and Poet Laureate. Spenser is a controversial figure due to his zeal for the destruction of Irish culture and colonisation of Ireland, yet he is one of the premier craftsmen of Modern English verse in its infancy. Spenser is best known for The Faerie Queene, an epic poem celebrating, through fantastical allegory, the Tudor dynasty and Elizabeth I.
amoretti iii: the sovereign beauty
The sovereign beauty which I do admire,
Witness the world how worthy to be praised:
The li...[read poem]
The sovereign beauty which I do admire,
Witness the world how worthy to be praised:
The li...
the ballade of the incompetent ballade-monger
I am not ambitious at all:
I am not a poet, I know
(Though I do love to see a mere scraw...[read poem]
I am not ambitious at all:
I am not a poet, I know
(Though I do love to see a mere scraw...
england and america
Republic of the West,
Enlightened, free, sublime,
Unquestionably best
Production ...[read poem]
Republic of the West,
Enlightened, free, sublime,
Unquestionably best
Production ...
the malefactor's plea
Of sentences that stir my bile,
Of phrases I detest,
There's one beyond all others vile;...[read poem]
Of sentences that stir my bile,
Of phrases I detest,
There's one beyond all others vile;...
men and women
As I was strolling lonely in the Backs,
I met a woman whom I did not like.
I did not like ...[read poem]
As I was strolling lonely in the Backs,
I met a woman whom I did not like.
I did not like ...
my education
At school I sometimes read a book,
And learned a lot of lessons;
Some small amount of ...[read poem]
At school I sometimes read a book,
And learned a lot of lessons;
Some small amount of ...
of f. w. h. m.: 1. to one that smokes
Spare us the hint of slightest desecration,
Spotless preserve us an untainted shrine;
...[read poem]
Spare us the hint of slightest desecration,
Spotless preserve us an untainted shrine;
...
the old school list
In a wild moraine of forgotten books,
On the glacier of years gone by,
As I plied my rak...[read poem]
In a wild moraine of forgotten books,
On the glacier of years gone by,
As I plied my rak...
a parodist's apology
If I've dared laugh at you, Robert Browning,
'Tis with eyes that with you have often wept:...[read poem]
If I've dared laugh at you, Robert Browning,
'Tis with eyes that with you have often wept:...
the philosopher and the philanthropist
Searching an infinite Where,
Probing a bottomless When,
Dreamfully wandering,
Cea...[read poem]
Searching an infinite Where,
Probing a bottomless When,
Dreamfully wandering,
Cea...
a sonnet
Two voices are there: one is of the deep;
It learns the storm-cloud's thunderous melody,
N...[read poem]
Two voices are there: one is of the deep;
It learns the storm-cloud's thunderous melody,
N...
steam-launches on the thames
Henley, June 7, 1891.
Shall we, to whom the stream by right ...[read poem]
Henley, June 7, 1891.
Shall we, to whom the stream by right ...
4th july, 1882, malines. midnight
Belgian, with cumbrous tread and iron boots,
Who in the murky middle of the night,
Designi...[read poem]
Belgian, with cumbrous tread and iron boots,
Who in the murky middle of the night,
Designi...
from the faerie queen
A gentle Knight was pricking on the plaine,
Y cladd in mightie armes and siluer shielde,
W...[read poem]
A gentle Knight was pricking on the plaine,
Y cladd in mightie armes and siluer shielde,
W...
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