John Lydgate
John Lydgate, biography of Saint Edmund in verse in a manuscript from 1433. London, British Library , Harley 2278, fol. 111r
John Lydgate (* around 1370 in Lidgate, Suffolk , † around 1451) was an English monk and poet.
At the age of fifteen he was admitted to the Benedictine convent at Bury St. Edmunds and received a comprehensive education there, and probably at the universities of Oxford and Cambridge . He was a great admirer of Chaucer's poetry . His own literary ambitions were supported by Kings Henry IV , Henry V, and Henry VI. supported, and so in time he assumed the position of court poet of the English kings. However, his main mentor was Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester .
He wrote a great number of allegories and fables and poems, some of them immense. Mention should be made of the epic poems Fall of Princes , Troy Book and Siege of Thebes .
Web links
- Literature by and about John Lydgate in the catalog of the German National Library
- Works by John Lydgate in the complete catalog of incandescent prints
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Lydgate, John |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | English monk and poet |
| DATE OF BIRTH | around 1370 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Lidgate, Suffolk |
| DATE OF DEATH | around 1451 |