Edward FitzGerald

A.D.P. Briggs (University of Bristol)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.07: English Writing and Culture of the Victorian Period, 1837-1901.
Vol. editors: Gillian Fenwick (University of Toronto), Jessica E. Gossling (Goldsmiths College, University of London), Grace Moore (University of Otago)

Dates

Born 31 Mar 1809
Died 13 Jun 1883
Activity 1829-1883

Places

Born in England
Active in England

Activities

Primary

Poet

Resources

Edward FitzGerald, a curiously ill-defined figure, could be described as the most undervalued of all the English poets. Nowadays he looks sadly disregarded, receiving nothing more than perfunctory mention in current histories and commentaries. You will not find his name on any school or university reading-lists. Not a single monograph has been written about him (though there are at least seven biographies) and critical articles on his work are scarce. And yet in 1859 he produced a small volume of verses that was to appear in hundreds of different editions and countless reprints (many of these lavishly illustrated by the best artists), outselling all other English poets. For several decades in the twentieth century his quotable lines were on everyone's lips. How can we explain this disparity between his former transcendent success and recent oblivion,...

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2725 words

Citation: Briggs, A.D.P.. "Edward FitzGerald". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 11 April 2006 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=1546, accessed 09 June 2026.]

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