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Michael Drayton - An Introduction

Michael Drayton was born in 1563 at Hartshill, Warwickshire, England. The facts of his early life remain unknown.

Drayton first published, in 1590, a volume of spiritual poems; The Harmony of the Church. Ironically the Archbishop of Canterbury seized almost the entire edition and had it destroyed.

In 1593 he published Idea: The Shepherd's Garland, 9 pastorals celebrating his own love-sorrows under the poetic name of Rowland. This was later expanded to a 64 sonnet cycle.

With the publication of The Legend of Piers Gaveston, Matilda and Mortimeriados, later enlarged and re-published, in 1603, under the title of The Barons' Wars, his career began to gather interest and attention.

In 1596, The Legend of Robert, Duke of Normandy, another historical poem was published, followed in 1597 by England's Heroical Epistles, a series of historical studies, in imitation of those of Ovid. Written in the heroic couplet, they contain some of his finest writing.

Like other poets of his era, Drayton wrote for the theatre; but unlike Shakespeare, Jonson, or Samuel Daniel, he invested little of his art in the genre. Between 1597 and 1602, Drayton was a member of the stable of playwrights who worked for Philip Henslowe. Henslowe's Diary links Drayton's name with 23 plays from that period, and, for all but one unfinished work, in collaboration with others such as Thomas Dekker, Anthony Munday, and Henry Chettle. Only one play has survived; Part 1 of Sir John Oldcastle, which Drayton wrote with Munday, Robert Wilson, and Richard Hathwaye but little of Drayton can be seen in its pages.

By this time, as a poet, Drayton was well received and admired at the Court of Elizabeth 1st. If he hoped to continue that admiration with the accession of James 1st he thought wrong. In 1603, he addressed a poem of compliment to James 1st, but it was ridiculed, and his services rudely rejected.

In 1605 Drayton reprinted his most important works; the historical poems and the Idea. Also published was a fantastic satire called The Man in the Moon and, for the for the first time the famous Ballad of Agincourt.

Since 1598 he had worked on Poly-Olbion, a work to celebrate all the points of topographical or antiquarian interest in Great Britain. Eighteen books in total, the first was published in 1614 and the last in 1622.

In 1627 he published another of his miscellaneous volumes. In it Drayton printed The Battle of Agincourt (an historical poem but not to be confused with his ballad on the same subject), The Miseries of Queen Margaret, and the acclaimed Nimphidia, the Court of Faery, as well as several other important pieces.

Drayton last published in 1630 with The Muses' Elizium.

Michael Drayton died in London on December 23rd, 1631. He was buried in Westminster Abbey, in Poets' Corner. A monument was placed there with memorial lines attributed to Ben Jonson.

Index of Contents

Michael Drayton - An Introduction

Michael Drayton - The Ballad Of Agincourt

Michael Drayton - To The Virginian Voyage

Woodstock. Rosamond to King Henry by Michael Drayton

Glastonbury By Michael Drayton from Poly-Olbion

Idea LIII - To The River Ancor by Michael Drayton

To The Reader of These Sonnets by Michael Drayton

How Many Paltry Foolish Painted Things by Michael Drayton

Sonnet XII - Whilst Taking My Pen by Michael Drayton

Sonnet XIII - Letters and Lines by Michael Drayton

Sonnet XIV - If He from Heav'n that Filch'd that Living Fire by Michael Drayton

Noah Threatening God's Vengeance Upon the World Sonnet XIX by Michael Drayton

Sonnet XX - An Evil Spirit by Michael Drayton

Sonnet XLIII - Why Should Your Fair Eyes with Such Sovereign Grace by Michael Drayton

Sonnet XLIV - Whilst Thus My Pen by Michael Drayton

Sonnet XLVII - In Pride of Wit by Michael Drayton

Sonnet L - As In Some Countries by Michael Drayton

Sonnet LI by Michael Drayton

Sonnet LVII - Best Discerned by Michael Drayton

Sonnet LVIII - In Former Times by Michael Drayton

Sonnet LXI - Since There's No help by Michael Drayton

Amor - VII by Michael Drayton

Michael Drayton - Amour XXX

From England's Helicon by Michael Drayton

Michael Drayton - To His Coy Love

Michael Drayton - Sirena

Idea's mirror Sonnet XXXVII. Dear Why Should You Command Me To My Rest

To My Most Dearly Loved Friend, Henry Reynolds Esquire, Of Poets and Poesie by Michael Drayton