Poets' Corner
{{Short description|South Transept of Westminster Abbey}}
{{About|the section of Westminster Abbey|the neighborhood of Berkeley, California|List of Berkeley neighborhoods}}
{{Refimprove|date = April 2024}}
{{EngvarB|date=May 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2017}}
{{Infobox cemetery
| name = Poets' Corner
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| image = Memorials to Shakespeare and others in Westminster Abbey.jpg
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| map_type = London
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| established = 1400
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| location = Westminster Abbey
| country = London, England
| coordinates = {{Coord|51|29|57|N|0|7|38.50|W|type:landmark_region:GB-EG|display=title,inline}}
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Poets' Corner is a section of the southern transept of Westminster Abbey in London, England, where many poets, playwrights, and writers are buried or commemorated.
The first poet interred in Poets' Corner was Geoffrey Chaucer in 1400.Harold Bloom (2009). "Geoffrey Chaucer". p. 13. Infobase Publishing William Shakespeare was commemorated with a monument in 1740, over a century after his death. Over the centuries, a tradition has grown up of interring or memorialising people there in recognition of their contribution to British culture. In the overwhelming majority of cases, the honour is awarded to writers.
In 2009, the founders of the Royal Ballet were commemorated in a memorial floor stone and on 25 September 2010, the writer Elizabeth Gaskell was celebrated with the dedication of a panel in the memorial window.[http://www.westminster-abbey.org/our-history/people/elizabeth-gaskell "Elizabeth Gaskell"]. Westminster-abbey.org (25 September 2010). Retrieved on 21 October 2011. On 6 December 2011 Ted Hughes, a former Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, was commemorated with a floor stone.[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-16055750 Ted Hughes takes his place in Poets' Corner], BBC News, 6 December 2011 On 22 November 2013, the fiftieth anniversary of his death, the writer C. S. Lewis was commemorated with a memorial floor stone.[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-25031909 "CS Lewis honoured with Poets' Corner memorial"]. BBC News. Retrieved 23 November 2012 The poet Philip Larkin was commemorated with a floor stone dedicated on 2 December 2016.{{cite web|title=Westminster Abbey honour for poet Philip Larkin|publisher=Westminster Abbey|url=http://www.westminster-abbey.org/press/news/2015/june/westminster-abbey-honour-for-poet-philip-larkin|date=June 2015|access-date=27 November 2016}}{{cite news|last=Sawyer|first=Patrick|title='Outsider' Larkin finally joins the Establishment in Poets' Corner|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/11/26/outsider-larkin-finally-joins-establishment-poets-corner/|date=26 November 2016}}{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-humber-38187840 |title=Westminster Poets' Corner memorial for Philip Larkin |work= BBC News |publisher=BBC |date=2 December 2016 |access-date=2 December 2016}}
History
File:View of Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey 01.jpg
File:View of the west wall of Poets' Corner, Westminster Abbey.jpg
The first poet interred in Poets' Corner, Geoffrey Chaucer, owed his 1400 burial in the Abbey (in front of St. Benedict's Chapel) more to his position as Clerk of Works of the Palace of Westminster than to his fame as a writer. The erection of his tomb by Nicholas Brigham in 1556 (to where Chaucer's remains were then transferred) and the nearby burial of Edmund Spenser in 1599 began a tradition that still continues. The area also houses the tombs of several Canons and Deans of the Abbey, as well as the grave of Thomas Parr who, it is said, died at the age of 152 in 1635 after having seen ten sovereigns on the throne.
Burial or commemoration in the Abbey does not always occur at or soon after the time of death. Lord Byron, for example, whose poetry was admired but who maintained a scandalous lifestyle, died in 1824 but was not given a memorial until 1969. Even William Shakespeare, buried at Stratford-upon-Avon in 1616, was not honoured with a monument until 1740 when one designed by William Kent was constructed in Poets' Corner (though shortly after Shakespeare's death William Basse had suggested Shakespeare should be buried there). Samuel Horsley, Dean of Westminster in 1796, was said to have tartly refused the request for the actress Kitty Clive to be buried in the Abbey:
if we do not draw some line in this theatrical ambition to mortuary fame, we shall soon make Westminster Abbey little better than a Gothic Green Room!The Times, 26 March 1796, p. 3
Not all poets appreciated memorialisation and Samuel Wesley's epitaph for Samuel Butler, who supposedly died in poverty, continued Butler's satiric tone:
{{poemquote|While Butler, needy wretch, was yet alive,
No generous patron would a dinner give;
See him, when starv'd to death, and turn'd to dust,
Presented with a monumental bust.
The poet's fate is here in emblem shown,
He ask'd for bread, and he received a stone.
}}
File:Charles Dickens grave 2012.jpg]]
Some of those buried in Poets' Corner also had memorials erected to them over or near their grave, either around the time of their death or later. In some cases, such as Joseph Addison, the burial took place elsewhere in Westminster Abbey, with a memorial later erected in Poets' Corner. In some cases a full burial of a body took place, in other, later, cases the body was cremated and the ashes buried. There are also cases where there was support for a particular individual to be buried in Poets' Corner, but the decision was made to bury them elsewhere in the Abbey, such as Edward Bulwer-Lytton. Other notable poets and writers, such as Aphra Behn, are buried elsewhere in the Abbey. At least two of the memorials (both to individuals buried in Poets' Corner – Nicholas Rowe and John Gay) were later moved to a location elsewhere in the Abbey due to the discovery of old paintings on the wall behind them. In 1936 the ashes of the author and poet Rudyard Kipling were interred.
Memorial types
The memorials can take several forms. Some are stone slabs set in the floor with a name and inscription carved on them, while others are more elaborate and carved stone monuments, or hanging stone tablets, or memorial busts. Some are commemorated in groups, such as the joint memorial for the Brontë sisters (commissioned in 1939, but not unveiled until 1947 due to the Second World War), the sixteen First World War poets inscribed on a stone floor slab and unveiled in 1985, and the four founders of the Royal Ballet, commemorated together in 2009.[http://www.westminster-abbey.org/press/news/news/2009/november/a-service-to-dedicate-a-memorial-to-the-founders-of-the-royal-ballet A Service to Dedicate a Memorial to the Founders of the Royal Ballet], Westminster Abbey press release, November 2009, accessed 16 March 2010
File:Brontes plaque Westminster Abbey.jpg
The grave of Ben Jonson is not in Poets' Corner, but is in the north aisle of the nave. It has the inscription "O Rare Ben Johnson" (perhaps the original spelling) on the slab above it. It has been suggested that this could be read "Orare Ben Johnson" (pray for Ben Johnson), which would indicate a deathbed return to Catholicism, but the carving shows a distinct space between "O" and "rare".{{cite web
| title = Monuments & Gravestones: Ben Jonson
| work = Westminster Abbey 1065 to today
| publisher = Dean and Chapter of Westminster Abbey
| url = http://www.westminster-abbey.org/history-research/monuments-gravestones/people/12177
| access-date =26 May 2008 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080107172342/http://www.westminster-abbey.org/history-research/monuments-gravestones/people/12177 |archive-date = 7 January 2008}} The fact that he was buried in an upright grave could be an indication of his reduced circumstances at the time of his deathAdams, J. Q. The Jonson Allusion Book. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1922: 195–6. but it has also been suggested that Jonson asked for a grave exactly 18 inches square from the monarch and received an upright grave to fit in the requested space.{{cite book
|last = Dunton
|first = Larkin
|title = The World and Its People
|url = https://archive.org/details/worldanditspeop05duntgoog
|publisher = Silver, Burdett
|year = 1896
|page = [https://archive.org/details/worldanditspeop05duntgoog/page/n42 34]}} As well as the gravestone in the north aisle of the nave, a wall tablet commemorating Jonson was later erected in Poets' Corner.
As floor and wall space began to run out, the decision was taken to install a stained glass memorial window (unveiled in 1994 in memory of Edward Horton Hubbard), and it is here that new names are added in the form of inscribed panes of glass. There is room for 20 names, and currently there are six names on this window, with the latest entry (Elizabeth Gaskell) unveiled on 25 September 2010.[http://www.westminster-abbey.org/press/news/news/2010/january/abbey-to-honour-cranfords-creator Abbey to honour Cranford's creator], Westminster Abbey press release, January 2010, accessed 15 March 2010{{Cite web|url=https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/elizabeth-gaskell|title=Elizabeth Gaskell|website=Westminster Abbey}} The memorial ceremonies often include guest speakers. In 1995, Oscar Wilde was commemorated in the window and those in attendance included Sir John Gielgud and Dame Judi Dench who both read extracts from his work.{{Cite news |title=Oscar Wilde |agency=Westminster Abbey |url=https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/oscar-wilde |access-date=9 May 2022 |archive-date=23 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200923062103/https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/oscar-wilde |url-status=live }}
Burials
Memorials
| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" |
| class="unsortable"| Image
! Name ! Born ! Died ! Age at death ! Year ! class="unsortable"| Details of ! class="unsortable"| Occupation |
|---|
| 100px
| 1672 | 1719 | 47 | 1809 | Statue by Richard Westmacott. Addison is buried elsewhere in the Abbey. | Poet and essayist |
| 100px
| 1724 | 1805 | 80 | 1807 | Poet and author |
| 100px
| 1822 | 1888 | 65 | 1989 | Memorial bust of 1891 in the east aisle of Poets' Corner by Albert Bruce-Joy. There is also a 1989 limestone and slate plaque honouring Arnold, by Donald Buttress, in Poets' Corner.{{cite web|url=https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/thomas-and-matthew-arnold#:~:text=His%20son%20Matthew%2C%20poet%20and,is%20inscribed%20on%20the%20bust.|title=Thomas and Matthew Arnold|website=Westminster Abbey|access-date=23 October 2022}} | Poet |
| 100px
| 1907 | 1991 | 83 | 2005 | Floor stone | Actress |
| 100px
| 1907 | 1973 | 66 | 1974 | Floor stone | Poet |
| 100px
| 1775 | 1817 | 41 | 1967 | Wall tablet | Author |
| 100px
| 1906 | 1984 | 77 | 1996 | Poet and author |
| 100px
| 1757 | 1827 | 69 | 1957 | Bronze memorial bust by Jacob Epstein, 1957{{cite web|url=https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/william-blake#i2415|title=William Blake|website=Westminster Abbey|access-date=6 September 2022}} | Poet and artist |
| ...
| 1681 | 1733 | 51–52 | 1772 | Monument | Actor |
| 100px
| 1816 | 1855 | 38 | 1947 | Memorial tablet | Author |
| 100px
| 1820 | 1849 | 29 | 1947 | Memorial tablet | Author |
| 100px
| 1818 | 1848 | 30 | 1947 | Memorial tablet | Author |
| 100px
| 1806 | 1861 | 55 | 1906 | Inscription added to Robert Browning's gravestone in 1906 | Poet |
| 100px
| 1752 | 1840 | 87 | 2002 | Panel on Hubbard memorial window | Author and playwright |
| 100px
| 1759 | 1796 | 37 | 1885 | Marble memorial bust by John Steell. Unveiled 7 March 1885 by the Earl of Rosebery.The Times, 9 March 1885{{cite web|url=https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/robert-burns |title= Robert Burns |website=Westminster Abbey |access-date= 2 September 2022}} | Poet |
| 100px
| 1612 | 1680 | 68 | 1721 | Memorial bust thought to be by John Michael Rysbrack; Butler is buried at St Paul's, Covent Garden.{{cite web |url= https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/samuel-butler#i13011 |title= Samuel Butler |website=Westminster Abbey |access-date= 12 October 2022}} | Poet |
| 100px
| 1788 | 1824 | 36 | 1969 | Floor stone | Poet |
| 100px
| Cædmon | fl.657 | fl.680 | unknown | 1966 | Floor stone | Poet |
| 100px
| John Campbell, 2nd Duke of Argyll | 1678 | 1743 | 64 | 1749 | Monument by Louis-Francois Roubiliac, erected 1749, with figures representing History, Eloquence and Minerva. The Duke is buried elsewhere in the Abbey.{{cite web|url= https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/john-campbell-2nd-duke-of-argyll#i12849 |title= John Campbell, 2nd Duke of Argyll |website=Westminster Abbey |access-date= 12 September 2022}} | Soldier and nobleman |
| 100px
| 1832 | 1898 | 65 | 1982 | Floor stone | Author |
| 100px
| 1793 | 1864 | 70 | 1989 | Floor stone | Poet |
| 100px
| 1772 | 1834 | 61 | 1885 | Memorial bust by Hamo Thornycroft{{cite web|url= https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/samuel-taylor-coleridge#i13886 |title= Samuel Taylor Coleridge |website=Westminster Abbey |access-date= 9 September 2022}} | Poet |
| 100px
| 1819 | 1880 | 61 | 1980 | Floor stone | Author |
| 100px
| 1888 | 1965 | 76 | 1967 | Floor stone | Poet and playwright |
| 100px
| 1939 | 2013 | 74 | 2014 | Journalist, comedian, writer and media personality |
| 100px
| 1810 | 1865 | 55 | 2010 | Panel on Hubbard memorial window | Novelist |
| 100px
| 1904 | 2000 | 96 | 2022 | Floor stone | Actor and director |
| 100px
| 1728 | 1774 | 45 | 1776 | Memorial tablet and bust | Poet and playwright |
| 100px
| 1833 | 1870 | 36 | 1934 | Memorial bust by Kathleen Scott{{Cite web|url=https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/adam-lindsay-gordon|title=Adam Lindsay Gordon|website=Westminster Abbey|access-date=29 July 2022}} | Poet |
| 100px
| 1666 | 1711 | 44–45 | 1727 | Monument by Francis Bird on the west wall of Poets' Corner erected 1726{{cite web|url=https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/john-ernest-grabe#i15186|title=John Ernest Grabe |website=Westminster Abbey|access-date= 9 September 2022}} | Priest and theologian |
| 100px
| 1716 | 1771 | 54 | 1778 | Monument | Poet and historian |
| 100px
| 1677 | 1761 | 83 | 1761 | Monument | Priest and scientist |
| 100px
| 1591 | 1674 | 83 | 1994 | Panel on Hubbard memorial window | Poet |
| 100px
| 1844 | 1889 | 44 | 1975 | Floor stone | Poet |
| | A. E. Housman
| 1859 | 1936 | 77 | 1996 | Panel on Hubbard memorial window | Poet |
| 100px
| 1930 | 1998 | 68 | 2011 | Floor stone at the foot of that for T. S. Eliot, one of his main influences | Poet |
| 100px
| 1843 | 1916 | 72 | 1976 | Floor stone | Author |
| 100px
| 1572 | 1637 | 65 | 1723 | Memorial with portrait medallion and masks designed by James Gibbs and carved by John Michael Rysbrack.{{cite web |url= https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/ben-jonson#i14372 |title= Ben Jonson |website=Westminster Abbey |access-date= 12 October 2022}} | Playwright and poet |
| 100px
| 1795 | 1821 | 25 | 1954 | Mural tablet | Poet |
| 100px
| 1792 | 1866 | 73 | 1873 | Bust by Thomas Woolner | Poet |
| 100px
| 1819 | 1875 | 55 | 1875 | Bust by Thomas Woolner | Author |
| 100px
| 1922 | 1985 | 63 | 2016 | Floor stone. The stone was inscribed with the final two lines from "An Arundel Tomb": Our almost-instinct almost true: | Poet and novelist |
| 100px
| 1885 | 1930 | 44 | 1985 | Floor stone | Author and poet |
| 100px
| 1812 | 1888 | 75 | 1988 | Floor stone | Author and poet |
| 100px
| 1898 | 1963 | 64 | 2013 | Floor stone. The dedication service, at noon on 22 November 2013, included a reading from The Last Battle by Douglas Gresham, younger stepson of Lewis. Flowers were laid by Walter Hooper, trustee and literary advisor to the Lewis Estate. An address was delivered by former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams. The floor stone inscription is a quotation from an address by Lewis: "I believe in Christianity as I believe that the Sun has risen, not only because I see it but because by it I see everything else."{{cite book|title=A service to dedicate a memorial to C. S. Lewis, writer, scholar, apologist|publisher=Westminster Abbey|year=2013}} | Author |
| 100px
| 1820 | 1887 | 67 | 1894 | Wall tablet. "A medallion portrait of the famous singer – the last work of the late Mr Birch – has been placed in Poets' Corner, Westminster Abbey, and was yesterday unveiled by the Princess Christian."The Times, 21 April 1894 | Opera singer |
| 100px
| 1807 | 1882 | 75 | 1884 | Marble bust by Thomas Brock, unveiled 1 March 1884.The Times, 2 November 1992, p. 6; 26 February 1884, p. 10; 3 March 1884, p. 8{{cite web|url=https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/henry-wadsworth-longfellow|title=Henry Wadsworth Longfellow|website=Westminster Abbey|access-date=29 July 2022}} | Poet |
| 100px
| 1850 | 1906 | 56 | 2001 | Floor stone | Historian |
| 100px
| Christopher Marlowe (disputed portrait) | 1564 | 1593 | 29 | 2002 | Panel on Hubbard memorial window | Playwright and poet |
| 100px
| 1724 | 1797 | 72–73 | 1799 | Memorial, by John Bacon, in the east aisle of Poets' Corner | Poet |
| 100px
| 1805 | 1872 | 66 | 1932 | Bust in east aisle of Poets' Corner by Thomas Woolner | Author |
| ...
| 1595 | 1650 | 54–56 | 1880 | Wall stone | Poet and playwright |
| 100px
| 1608 | 1674 | 65 | 1737 | Monument with bust by John Michael Rysbrack | Poet and author |
| 100px
| 1676 | 1709 | 32 | 1710 | Monument | Poet |
| 100px
| 1688 | 1744 | 56 | 1994 | Panel on Hubbard memorial window | Poet |
| 100px
| 1707 | 1782 | 74 | ... | Monument | Military physician |
| 100px
| 1711 | 1768 | 56–57 | ... | Monument. Later moved to the triforium. | Actress |
| 100px
| 1819 | 1900 | 80 | 1902 | Portrait roundel in bronze by Edward Onslow Ford. Unveiled 8 February 1902, after a controversy over whether Ruskin felt monuments like this wasted money and disfigured a building's architectural unity.Sydney C. Cockerell letter to The Times, 22 August 1900; The Times, 7 February 1902, p. 9; 10 February 1902, p. 8 | Poet and art critic |
| 100px
| 1771 | 1832 | 61 | 1897 | Bust by the Scottish sculptor John Hutchison, "a beautifully executed copy of the famous Chantrey bust at Abbotsford".The Times, 22 May 1897, p. 16 | Author and poet |
| 100px
| c.1642 | 1692 | ~50 | c.1700 | Monument | Poet and playwright |
| 100px
| 1564 | 1616 | 52 | 1740 | Statue with surround designed by William Kent and carved by Peter Scheemakers{{cite web|url=https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/william-shakespeare|title=William Shakespeare |website=Westminster Abbey |access-date=12 September 2022}} | Playwright and poet |
| 100px
| 1735 | 1813 | 77 | 1816 | Monument | Slavery abolitionist |
| 100px
| 1792 | 1822 | 29 | 1954 | Mural tablet | Poet |
| 100px
| 1774 | 1843 | 68 | 1845 | Marble memorial bust with surround by Henry Weekes{{cite web|url=https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/robert-southey#i14793|title=Robert Southey|website=Westminster Abbey|access-date=1 September 2022}} | Poet |
| 100px
| 1811 | 1863 | 52 | 1865 | Marble bust by Carlo Marochetti{{cite web|url=https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/william-makepeace-thackeray |title=William Makepeace Thackeray|website=Westminster Abbey|access-date=29 July 2022}} | Author |
| 100px
| 1700 | 1748 | 47 | 1762 | Sculpture group designed by Robert Adam and carved by Michael Spring{{cite web|url=https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/james-thomson#i14420 |title=James Thomson|website=Westminster Abbey|access-date=12 September 2022}} | Poet and playwright |
| 100px
| 1914 | 1953 | 39 | 1982 | Poet and author |
| 100px
| 1815 | 1882 | 67 | 1993 | Floor stone | Author |
| 100px
| 1739 | 1815 | 76 | c.1815"Yesterday morning, at half-past eleven o'clock, the remains of Dr. VINCENT, the Dean of Westminster, were interred in a private manner, at the back of DRYDEN's monument." The Times, 30 December 1815, p. 3 1 | Monument | Dean of Westminster |
| 100px
| 1854 | 1900 | 46 | 1995 | Panel on Hubbard memorial window | Playwright and author |
| 100px
| 1770 | 1850 | 80 | 1854 | Statue by Frederick Thrupp erected 1854.{{cite web|url= https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/william-wordsworth#i13676 |title= William Wordsworth |website=Westminster Abbey |access-date= 15 August 2022}} | Poet |
| 100px
| 1746 | 1813 | 67 | ... | Monument | Architect |
First World War poets
The memorial in Poets' Corner, Westminster Abbey, to 16 Great War poets is a slate stone slab with the names of the poets inscribed on it. It was unveiled on 11 November 1985, the 67th anniversary of the Armistice. An additional inscription quotes Owen's "Preface":[http://net.lib.byu.edu/english/wwi/poets/poets.html Poets of the Great War] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080922074012/http://net.lib.byu.edu/english/WWI/poets/poets.html |date=22 September 2008 }}, Brigham Young University, accessed 14 March 2010
{{cquote|My subject is War, and the pity of War. The Poetry is in the pity.}}
File:WW1 Poets floorstone, Westminster Abbey.jpg
| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" | |
| class="unsortable"| Image
! Poet ! Born ! Died ! Age when ! class="unsortable"| Notes on ! class="unsortable"| Notes on | |
|---|---|
| ... | Richard Aldington
| 1892 | 1962 | 22 | Enlisted 1916 | ... |
| 100px
| 1869 | 1943 | 44 | Volunteered in 1915 and 1916 | ... | |
| 100px
| 1896 | 1974 | 17 | Commissioned August 1915 | ... | |
| 100px
| Rupert Brooke † | 1887 | 1915 | 27 | Commissioned August 1914 | ... | |
| ...
| 1878 | 1962 | 35 | Rejected several times | ... | |
| ...
| 1895 | 1985 | 19 | Commissioned 1914 | ... | |
| 100px
| Julian Grenfell † | 1888 | 1915 | 26 | Commissioned 1910 | ... | |
| ...
| 1890 | 1937 | 23 | Private | ... | |
| 100px
| 1895 | 1974 | 18 | Enlisted 1915 | ... | |
| 100px
| 1893 | 1944 | 20 | Commissioned 1914 | ... | |
| 100px
| Wilfred Owen † | 1893 | 1918 | 21 | Enlisted 1915 | ... | |
| 100px
| 1893 | 1968 | 20 | Captain | ... | |
| 100px
| Isaac Rosenberg † | 1890 | 1918 | 23 | Enlisted October 1915 | ... | |
| 100px
| 1886 | 1967 | 27 | Enlisted 1914 | ... | |
| 100px
| Charles Sorley † | 1895 | 1915 | 19 | Enlisted 1914 | ... | |
| 100px
| Edward Thomas † | 1878 | 1917 | 36 | Enlisted July 1915 | ... |
The † symbol indicates poets who died during the war.
Royal Ballet
The stone slab floor memorial to the four founders of the Royal Ballet was dedicated on 17 November 2009.
File:Royal Ballet floorstone, Westminster Abbey.jpg
| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" |
| class="unsortable"| Image
! Name ! Born ! Died ! Age at death ! class="unsortable"| Notes on |
|---|
| | Ninette de Valois
| 1898 | 2001 | 102 | ... |
| ...
| 1904 | 1988 | 84 | ... |
| 100px
| 1905 | 1951 | 45 | ... |
| 100px
| 1919 | 1991 | 71 | ... |
Elsewhere in the Abbey
Poets and writers commemorated elsewhere in Westminster Abbey, but not in Poets' Corner proper.Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey (James Wilkinson, 2007), inside back pageTreasures of Westminster Abbey (Tony Trowles, 2008)
| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" |
| class="unsortable"| Image
! Name ! Born ! Died ! Age at death ! Year ! class="unsortable"| Details of ! class="unsortable"| Notes on |
|---|
| 100px
| 1570 | 1638 | 67–68 | | Bronze bust with figures of Apollo and Athene in south anbulatory{{cite web|url=https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/robert-ayton|title=Robert Ayton |website=Westminster Abbey |access-date=16 September 2022}} | Poet |
| 100px
| 1640 | 1689 | 48 | | Gravestone | Author and playwright |
| 100px
| 1803 | 1873 | 69 | | Gravestone | Author and poet |
| 100px
| 1628 | 1688 | 59 | 1912 | Memorial window | Author |
| 100px
| Margaret Cavendish, Duchess of Newcastle-upon-Tyne | 1623 | 1673 | 69–70 | | Monument | Author and poet |
| 100px
| William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Newcastle-upon-Tyne | 1592 | 1676 | 84 | | Monument | Playwright and poet |
| 100px
| 1670 | 1729 | 58 | c.1730 | Monument | Playwright and poet |
| 100px
| 1899 | 1973 | 73 | 1984 | Floor stone | Playwright and composer |
| 100px
| 1731 | 1800 | 68 | 1876 | Memorial window | Poet and hymnodist |
| 100px
| Wentworth Dillon, 4th Earl of Roscommon | 1637 | 1685 | 47–48 | | Grave not marked | Poet |
| 100px
| Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield | 1804 | 1881 | 76 | 1884 | Statue by Joseph Boehm | Author and politician |
| 100px
| 1593 | 1633 | 39 | 1876 | Memorial window | Poet and orator |
| 100px
| 1626 | 1698 | 72 | | | Playwright |
| 100px
| 1819 | 1891 | 72 | | Tablet and window | Poet |
| 100px
| 1683 | 1730 | 47 | | Gravestone | Actress |
| 100px
| c.1564 | 1641 | 76–77 | | Gravestone | Antiquarian |
| 100px
| 1815 | 1881 | 65 | 1884 | Tomb and effigy | Author |
| 100px
| 1882 | 1976 | 93 | | Gravestone | Actress |
| 100px
| 1872 | 1958 | 86 | 1958 | Floor stone | Composer |
| 100px
| 1674 | 1748 | 74 | 1779 | Monument | Hymnodist |
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|1881 |1975 |93 |2019 |Stone plaque designed by Stephen Raw and carved by Annet Stirling, unveiled in the south choir aisle in 2019 {{cite web|url=https://www.ft.com/content/3280beb6-db02-11e9-8f9b-77216ebe1f17 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221211/https://www.ft.com/content/3280beb6-db02-11e9-8f9b-77216ebe1f17 |archive-date=11 December 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=PG Wodehouse commemorated with Westminster Abbey plaque |website= Financial Times |date= 20 September 2019 |access-date=22 September 2019}}{{cite web|url=https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/pgwodehouse|title=P.G Wodehouse |website=Westminster Abbey |access-date= 14 September 2022}} |Humourist, novelist, lyricist, playwright |
In literature
Poets' Corner is also the title of a play by James Huntrods,{{Cite web|url=http://theatre-studies.co.uk/2009/09/04/two-4-star-reviews-for-poets-corner/|title=Two 4-star reviews for Poets' Corner}} and The Poets' Corner was a book of caricatures of famous poets by Max Beerbohm published in 1904.
Notes and references
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