John Dyer

Stephen Van-Hagen (University of Coventry)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.2: Welsh Writing and Culture, 400-present.
Vol. editors: Kirsti Bohata (Swansea University), Andrew Radford (University of Glasgow), Nicholas Seager (University of Keele), Rita Singer (Aberystwyth University)

Dates

Born 13 Aug 1699
Died 15 Dec 1757
Activity 1726-1757

Places

Born in Wales
Active in Wales

Activities

Primary

Poet

Resources

Dyer's Works

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Born in Wales in 1699, Dyer was the second son of an attorney who expected his offspring to follow in his footsteps. Dyer studied at Westminster School, before returning to Wales at his father's behest where he worked in the family legal firm. His father's death allowed Dyer to abandon the legal profession however, and he left for London to follow his artistic bent. He studied painting with Jonathan Richardson and became an intimate of the “Hillarian” circle: Aaron Hill, James Thomson, Martha Fowke, David Mallet and Richard Savage. In 1724 he travelled widely in Italy, experiences later manifested in

The Ruins of Rome

(1740). His earliest publications were six poems in Savage's

Miscellany

(1726), containing a variety of verses by the “Hillarian” circle. Amongst these was…

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1162 words

Citation: Van-Hagen, Stephen. "John Dyer". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 21 October 2006; last revised 19 September 2007. [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=1371, accessed 04 May 2024.]

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