Charles Wolfe (poet)
Encyclopedia
Charles Wolfe was an Irish poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
, chiefly remembered for his "exquisite elegy", The Burial of Sir John Moore after Corunna
Family
Born at Blackhall, County KildareCounty Kildare
County Kildare is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county...
, the youngest son of Theobald Wolfe of Blackhall - grandson of Richard Wolfe of Forenaughts House in the same county - and his wife Frances, daughter of Rev. Peter Lombard. Charles Wolfe's grandfather was a first cousin of Arthur Wolfe, 1st Viscount Kilwarden
Arthur Wolfe, 1st Viscount Kilwarden
Arthur Wolfe, 1st Viscount Kilwarden KC was an Irish peer, politician and judge.Wolfe was born at , near Naas, being the fifth son of John Wolfe and his wife Mary Philpot. Wolfe was educated at Trinity College, Dublin and was called to the Irish Bar in 1766...
and the godfather, but widely believed to be the natural father, of Theobald Wolfe Tone
Theobald Wolfe Tone
Theobald Wolfe Tone or Wolfe Tone , was a leading Irish revolutionary figure and one of the founding members of the United Irishmen and is regarded as the father of Irish Republicanism. He was captured by British forces at Lough Swilly in Donegal and taken prisoner...
.
Education
Not long after he was born, his father died and the family moved to EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. In 1801, Wolfe was sent to a school in Bath but was sent home a few months later due to his ill health. From 1802 to 1805, he was tutored by a Dr Evans in Salisbury
Salisbury
Salisbury is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England and the only city in the county. It is the second largest settlement in the county...
before being sent to Winchester College
Winchester College
Winchester College is an independent school for boys in the British public school tradition, situated in Winchester, Hampshire, the former capital of England. It has existed in its present location for over 600 years and claims the longest unbroken history of any school in England...
. He seems to have been exceedingly popular both at school and within his own family. In 1808, his family returned to Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, and the following year he was entered into Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
, graduating in 1814. He had turned down the chance to read for a scholarship
Scholarship
A scholarship is an award of financial aid for a student to further education. Scholarships are awarded on various criteria usually reflecting the values and purposes of the donor or founder of the award.-Types:...
as he was in love with a girl and could not commit to celibacy
Celibacy
Celibacy is a personal commitment to avoiding sexual relations, in particular a vow from marriage. Typically celibacy involves avoiding all romantic relationships of any kind. An individual may choose celibacy for religious reasons, such as is the case for priests in some religions, for reasons of...
as was then required.
Career
He was ordained as a Church of IrelandChurch of Ireland
The Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. The church operates in all parts of Ireland and is the second largest religious body on the island after the Roman Catholic Church...
priest in 1817, first taking the Curacy of Ballyclog in Co. Tyrone before transferring almost immediately to Donaghmore, County Tyrone. There he developed a close friendship and deep respect for the Rev. Thomas Meredith
Thomas Meredith
The Rev. Dr Thomas Meredith D.D., F.T.C.D. was an Anglo-Irish clergyman and mathematician, best remembered for his association with the poet Charles Wolfe, and as the subject of a ghost story related in True Irish Ghost Stories and Memorials to the Dead-Background:Born at Templerany House, Co...
, Rector of nearby Ardtrea, Co. Tyrone, and a former Fellow of Trinity College Dublin. Wolfe wrote two epitaphs for Meredith, one on his memorial in the parish church of Ardtrea, and another intended for his tomb, which can both be read within Meredith's entry.
Charles Wolfe is best remembered for his poem, The Burial of Sir John Moore
John Moore (British soldier)
Lieutenant-General Sir John Moore, KB was a British soldier and General. He is best known for his military training reforms and for his death at the Battle of Corunna, in which his force was defeated but gained a tactical advantage over a French army under Marshal Soult during the Peninsular...
after Corunna, written in 1816 and much collected in 19th and 20th century anthologies. The poem first appeared in the Newry
Newry
Newry is a city in Northern Ireland. The River Clanrye, which runs through the city, formed the historic border between County Armagh and County Down. It is from Belfast and from Dublin. Newry had a population of 27,433 at the 2001 Census, while Newry and Mourne Council Area had a population...
Telegraph, April 19, 1817, and was re-printed in many other periodicals. But it was forgotten until after his death when Lord Byron drew the attention of the public to it. Wolfe's only volume of verse, Poetical Remains appeared in 1825 with The Burial of Sir John Moore and fourteen other verses of an equally high standard.
Death
Wolfe remained at Donoughmore until 1820, but, rejected by the woman for whom he gave up his academic career, and with his only real friend in Co. Tyrone now dead (Meredith), he moved to CobhCobh
Cobh is a seaport town on the south coast of County Cork, Ireland. Cobh is on the south side of Great Island in Cork Harbour. Facing the town are Spike Island and Haulbowline Island...
, where he remained until his death three years later from consumption (tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
), caught from a cow at the age of 31. He is buried in Cobh at the cemetery known locally as Old Church Cemetery, but properly Clonmel Cemetery. There is also a plaque to his memory in the church at Castlecaulfield
Castlecaulfield
Castlecaulfield is a small village in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It lies about three kilometres west of Dungannon and is part of the Dungannon and South Tyrone Borough Council area. The village is mostly within the townland of Drumreany, although part of it extends into Lismonaghan....
, the village where he lived whilst Curate at Donaghmore, as well as a marble monument to him at St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin
St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin
Saint Patrick's Cathedral , or more formally, the Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Patrick is a cathedral of the Church of Ireland in Dublin, Ireland which was founded in 1191. The Church has designated it as The National Cathedral of Ireland...
.
