The Author

George Crabbe, «the poet of the poor» was born in Aldeburgh, Suffolk, in 1754. In 1767 he was apprenticed to a doctor. But in 1770 he determined on a career in writing and went to London. In 1781 he took the holy orders and became a curate at Aldeburgh. From 1782 to 1785 he was chaplain to the Duke of Rutland. After the death of his wife he moved to Trowbridge, Wiltshire, where he died in 1832. His narrative poetry paints a closely observed picture of rural poverty and landscape. Byron called him «nature's sternest painter yet the best».

The Work

Inebrity (1775)
The Library (1781)
The Village (1783)
The Newspaper (1785)
The Parish Register (1807)
The Borough (1810)
Tales in Verse (1812)
Tales of the Hall (1819)

Appendix

Sources/Colophon