BYRON, GEORGE GORDON NOEL

Specialty Definition: George Gordon Byron, Lord Byron

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

George Gordon Noel Byron, 6th Baron Byron, best known as Lord Byron (January 22, 1788-April 19, 1824).

- Lord Byron (1803) -

The best-known Romantic poet in his own day, Byron was famously described by Lady Caroline Lamb, a former lover who continued to stalk him for many years, as "Mad, bad and dangerous to know". Some surmise that he had bipolar disorder, which was the source of his tempestuous moods.

His father was an English aristocrat; his mother was a Scottish one. His father left his mother before he was born. As a result his mother moved back to northeast Scotland shortly after his birth in London and he was raised in Aberdeen, Scotland in straitened circumstances.

Notable Poems:

Childe Harold
The Giaour
The Corsair
Don Juan

From 1801 to 1808, Byron had a Newfoundland named Boatswain. Boatswain is buried at Newstead Abbey, where his monument is larger than Byron's. Byron also had a bear, a fox, monkeys, a parrot, cats, an eagle, a crow, a falcon, peacocks, guinea hens, an Egyptian crane, a badger, geese, and a heron.

Byron's reputation has diminished among academics considerably, however, since the early 20th century, and especially in the light of modernist and postmodernist critical studies of his work.

Lord Byron died on April 19, 1824 at Mesolongi, Greece. His body was returned to England and buried in the Parish Church Cemetery in Hucknall, Nottinghamshire.

Byron married Anne Isabella Milbanke ("Annabella") at Seaham Hall, County Durham on 2 January 1815, but they separated after less than two years. However, their marriage yielded a daughter, Ada Lovelace, who became notable for her contributions to the early study of what is now known as computer science, in particular she was the first programmer. She never knew her father.

Note: The image shown here of Lord Byron is a photo of a portrait by Elisabeth Vigee-Lebrun.

[The Letters of Lord Byron Audio Book CD] The Letters of Lord Byron gives a fascinating insight into his life. Available now as Double CD (£12) and Double Audio Cassette (£9) from: http://www.greenparkdirect.co.uk/acatalog/Classic_Journals.html