Courthope, William John

(1842-1917)

   Born in South Malling vicarage, near Lewes, Sussex, he attended Harrow School, Corpus Christi College, Oxford, and New College, Oxford. He won the Newdigate prize in 1864, and chancellor's prize for an English essay on The Genius of Spenser. Trained in law, in 1887 he became a civil service commissioner, and as senior commissioner, a post he held from 1892 until his retirement in 1907, he did much to humanize the examinations for the higher appointments. He became professor of poetry at Oxford and was made an honorary fellow of New College, Oxford, in 1896. Between 1871 and 1889 he published five volumes (out of ten) of the works of Alexander Pope. His principal publications: History of English Poetry, 1895-1910. The Chancellor's Garden, 1888. Life in Poetry, Law in Taste, 1901 (his professorial lectures). Ludibria Lunae, 1869 (a satirical burlesque of women's rights). Paradise of Birds, 1870. Translations of Martial's Epigrams, 1914. The Country Town and Other Poems, 1920. Some of his poems: "Bird Catcher's Song," "Dodoism," "Hop-Picking," "In Memory of Arthur Eden," "The Chancellor's Garden," "The Trail of the Bird."

   Sources: Dictionary of National Biography. Electronic Edition, 1.1. Oxford University Press, 1997. Encyclopædia Britannica Ultimate Reference Suite DVD, 2006. English Poetry: Author Search. Chadwyck-Healey Ltd., 1995 (http://www.lib.utexas.edu:8080/search/epoetry/author. html). Great Books Online. www.bartleby.com. Other Men's Flowers. A.P. Wavell, ed. Jonathan Cape, 1990. Stanford University Libraries and Academic Information Resources (http://library.stanford.edu). The Columbia Granger's Index to Poetry. 11th ed. The Columbia Granger's World of Poetry, Columbia University Press, 2005 (http://www.columbiagrangers.org). The Oxford Companion to English Literature. 6th edition. Margaret Drabble, ed. Oxford University Press, 2000.