Drummond, William, of Hawthornden

(1585-1649)

   He was born at Castle Hawthornden near Edinburgh, the son of a wealthy landowner. From 1500 he was gentleman-usher to King James VI. Educated at the Edinburgh High School, he graduated from Edinburgh University in 1605 and then spent two years in France studying law (he inherited the estate in 1610.) Interested in science, his patent for converting salt water into sweet was granted in 1627. He wrote in English, rather than in Scots, for which he was severely criticized. He adapted and translated poems from French, Italian, and Spanish. The execution of Charles I is said to have hastened Drummond's death. Some of his publications: Tears on the Death of Meliades, 1613. Poems, 1616 (including 41 sonnets). Forth Feasting, 1617 (a celebration of King James' visit to Scotland). A Midnight's Trance, 1619. A Cypresse Grove 1623, (a meditation on death, second edition, 1630). A Pastorall Elegie, 1638. The History of Scotland, 1655. Some of his poems: "Her Passing," "On Mary Magdalene," "Phoebus Arise," "Summons to Love," "To His Lute," "To Sir William Alexander," "To the Nightingale."

   Sources: Dictionary of National Biography. Electronic Edition 1.1. Oxford University Press, 1997. Encyclopædia Britannica Ultimate Reference Suite DVD, 2006. William Drummond of Hawthornden, Poems (http://www.sonnets. org/drummond.htm). Poemhunter (www.poemhunter. com). 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 National Portrait Gallery (www.npg.org.uk). The New Oxford Book of Seventeenth Century Verse. Alastair Fowler, ed. Oxford University Press, 2004. The Oxford Book of Christian Verse. Lord David Cecil, ed. Oxford University Press, 1940. The Oxford Companion to English Literature. 6th edition. Margaret Drabble, ed. Oxford University Press, 2000.