Thomas Watson (poet)
Encyclopedia
Thomas Watson English lyrical poet, was the son of William Watson (d.1559) and Anne Lee (d.1561). He was educated at Winchester College
and Oxford
University. He then spent 7 years in France and Italy before studying law in London
. Though he often signed his works with "student of law" he never practiced law, considering his true passion was literature.
His De remedio amoris, which was perhaps his earliest important composition, is lost, as is his "piece of work written in the commendation of women-kind", which was also in Latin verse. The earliest publication by Watson which has survived is a Latin version of the Antigone of Sophocles
, issued in 1581, dedicated to Philip Howard, 20th Earl of Arundel
. The version also contains an appendix of Latin Allegorical poems and experiments in classical metres.
The following year Watson appears for the first time as an English poet in some verses prefixed to George Whetstone's
Heptameron, and also in a far more important work, as the author of the Hecatompathia or Passionate Centurie of Love, dedicated to Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford
, who had read the poems in manuscript and encouraged Watson to publish them. Also entitled Watson's Passion the work contains over 100 poems in French and Italian styles, including a number of translations. The technical peculiarity of these interesting poems is that, although they appear and profess to be sonnet
s, they are written in triple sets of common six-line stanza, and therefore have eighteen lines each.
He was largely recognized for his poetic "Methods + motifs" which occurred between 1580 and 1590. He was held in high regard by his contemporaries even though his style was drastically similar to his late 15th and eary 16th century Italian Predecessors Sannazaro and Strozzi. He openly drew from Petrarch
and Ronsard, with what Sidney Lee
describes as "drops of water from Petrarach and Ronsard's fountains." Watson seriously desired to recommend his 18 line form to future sonneteers; but in this he had no imitators. Nevertheless, according to The Oxford Companion to English Literature, Watson's sonnets "appear to have been studied by Shakespeare
and other contemporaries."
As his reputation grew, he began to align himself with such literary powers as Marlowe
, Peele
, Royden and Atchelow. He also grew a following of younger writers like Barnfield
and Nashe, who regarded him as the best Latin poet in England. In 1585 he published his first Latin epic 'Amyntas', eleven days of a shepherd's mourning for the death of his lover, Phyllis. Watson's epic was afterwards translated into English by Abraham Fraunce
, without permission of the author (1587). Fraunce's translation was highly criticized. "His sins of translation result generally from an excess of zeal rather than a failure to understand his author's intention." Although a relationship to Torquato Tasso's "Aminta' is often supposed, in fact there is none. In the fourth reprint of his English version in 1591 Fraunce also printed his own translation of the Tasso work, and it is this that has given rise to the confusion. . In 1590 he published, in English and Latin verse, his Meliboeus, an elegy on the death of Sir Francis Walsingham
. Related to music, he also wrote a laudatory poem about John Case's The Praise of Musc (1586). in 1590, he published The First Set of Italian Madrigals a collection by Marenzio and given lyrics by Watson. They were set to music by two others and William Byrd
. Of the remainder of Watson's career nothing is known, save that on the 26th of September 1592 he was buried in the church of St Bartholomew the Less, and that a month later his second Latin epic "Amintae Gaudia" was seen through the press by his friend Marlowe. This tells the story of Amyntas' love, and eventual winning, of Phyllis, and is therefore chronologically the first part of the earlier epic. In the following year his last book, The Tears of Fancie, or Love Disdained (1593), was posthumously published under the initials T.W. This is a collection of sixty sonnets, regular in form, so far at least as to have fourteen lines each. Spenser
is supposed to have alluded to the untimely death of Watson in Colin Clouts Come Home Again, when he says: "Amyntas quite is gone and lies full low, Having his Amaryllis left to moan".
He is mentioned by Francis Meres
in company with Shakespeare
, Peele and Marlowe
among "the best for tragedie", but no dramatic work of his except the translations above mentioned is extant today. It is certain that Watson enjoyed a great reputation in his lifetime, and that he was not without a direct influence upon the youth of Shakespeare. He was the first, after the original experiment made by Wyat
and Surrey
, to introduce the pure imitation of Petrarch into English poetry. "He shows his inventiveness by his variety of treatment...It is the number of different ways in which he can introduce these devices in this matter than measures his success as a poet." He was well read in Italian, French and Greek literature.
Watson plays a prominent part in the novel A Dead Man in Deptford
by Anthony Burgess
, in which he is a close friend of Christopher Marlowe
. In the book Watson introduces Marlowe to Sir Francis Walsingham and he also contributes to several of Marlowe's plays.
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...
and Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
University. He then spent 7 years in France and Italy before studying law in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Though he often signed his works with "student of law" he never practiced law, considering his true passion was literature.
His De remedio amoris, which was perhaps his earliest important composition, is lost, as is his "piece of work written in the commendation of women-kind", which was also in Latin verse. The earliest publication by Watson which has survived is a Latin version of the Antigone of Sophocles
Sophocles
Sophocles is one of three ancient Greek tragedians whose plays have survived. His first plays were written later than those of Aeschylus, and earlier than or contemporary with those of Euripides...
, issued in 1581, dedicated to Philip Howard, 20th Earl of Arundel
Philip Howard, 20th Earl of Arundel
Saint Philip Howard, 20th Earl of Arundel was an English nobleman. He was canonised by Pope Paul VI in 1970, as one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales...
. The version also contains an appendix of Latin Allegorical poems and experiments in classical metres.
The following year Watson appears for the first time as an English poet in some verses prefixed to George Whetstone's
George Whetstone
George Whetstone was an English dramatist and author.He was the third son of Robert Whetstone , a member of a wealthy family that owned the manor of Walcot at Barnack, near Stamford, Lincolnshire...
Heptameron, and also in a far more important work, as the author of the Hecatompathia or Passionate Centurie of Love, dedicated to Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford
Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford
Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford was an Elizabethan courtier, playwright, lyric poet, sportsman and patron of the arts, and is currently the most popular alternative candidate proposed for the authorship of Shakespeare's works....
, who had read the poems in manuscript and encouraged Watson to publish them. Also entitled Watson's Passion the work contains over 100 poems in French and Italian styles, including a number of translations. The technical peculiarity of these interesting poems is that, although they appear and profess to be sonnet
Sonnet
A sonnet is one of several forms of poetry that originate in Europe, mainly Provence and Italy. A sonnet commonly has 14 lines. The term "sonnet" derives from the Occitan word sonet and the Italian word sonetto, both meaning "little song" or "little sound"...
s, they are written in triple sets of common six-line stanza, and therefore have eighteen lines each.
He was largely recognized for his poetic "Methods + motifs" which occurred between 1580 and 1590. He was held in high regard by his contemporaries even though his style was drastically similar to his late 15th and eary 16th century Italian Predecessors Sannazaro and Strozzi. He openly drew from Petrarch
Petrarch
Francesco Petrarca , known in English as Petrarch, was an Italian scholar, poet and one of the earliest humanists. Petrarch is often called the "Father of Humanism"...
and Ronsard, with what Sidney Lee
Sidney Lee
Sir Sidney Lee was an English biographer and critic.He was born Solomon Lazarus Lee at 12 Keppel Street, Bloomsbury, London and educated at the City of London School and at Balliol College, Oxford, where he graduated in modern history in 1882. In the next year he became assistant-editor of the...
describes as "drops of water from Petrarach and Ronsard's fountains." Watson seriously desired to recommend his 18 line form to future sonneteers; but in this he had no imitators. Nevertheless, according to The Oxford Companion to English Literature, Watson's sonnets "appear to have been studied by Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
and other contemporaries."
As his reputation grew, he began to align himself with such literary powers as Marlowe
Marlowe
- People :Given name* Marlowe Gardiner-Heslin , Canadian actor* Marlowe Morris , American jazz musicianSurname* Andrew W...
, Peele
George Peele
George Peele , was an English dramatist.-Life:Peele was christened on 25 July 1556. His father, who appears to have belonged to a Devonshire family, was clerk of Christ's Hospital, and wrote two treatises on bookkeeping...
, Royden and Atchelow. He also grew a following of younger writers like Barnfield
Richard Barnfield
Richard Barnfield , English poet, was born at Norbury, Staffordshire, and brought up in Newport, Shropshire.He was baptized on 13 June 1574, the son of Richard Barnfield, gentleman. His obscure though close relationship with Shakespeare has long made him interesting to scholars...
and Nashe, who regarded him as the best Latin poet in England. In 1585 he published his first Latin epic 'Amyntas', eleven days of a shepherd's mourning for the death of his lover, Phyllis. Watson's epic was afterwards translated into English by Abraham Fraunce
Abraham Fraunce
Abraham Fraunce , was an English poet.-Life:A native of Shropshire, he was born between 1558 and 1560. His name appears in a list of pupils of Shrewsbury School in January 1571, and he joined St John's College, Cambridge, in 1576, becoming a fellow in 1580/1...
, without permission of the author (1587). Fraunce's translation was highly criticized. "His sins of translation result generally from an excess of zeal rather than a failure to understand his author's intention." Although a relationship to Torquato Tasso's "Aminta' is often supposed, in fact there is none. In the fourth reprint of his English version in 1591 Fraunce also printed his own translation of the Tasso work, and it is this that has given rise to the confusion. . In 1590 he published, in English and Latin verse, his Meliboeus, an elegy on the death of Sir Francis Walsingham
Francis Walsingham
Sir Francis Walsingham was Principal Secretary to Elizabeth I of England from 1573 until 1590, and is popularly remembered as her "spymaster". Walsingham is frequently cited as one of the earliest practitioners of modern intelligence methods both for espionage and for domestic security...
. Related to music, he also wrote a laudatory poem about John Case's The Praise of Musc (1586). in 1590, he published The First Set of Italian Madrigals a collection by Marenzio and given lyrics by Watson. They were set to music by two others and William Byrd
William Byrd
William Byrd was an English composer of the Renaissance. He wrote in many of the forms current in England at the time, including various types of sacred and secular polyphony, keyboard and consort music.-Provenance:Knowledge of Byrd's biography expanded in the late 20th century, thanks largely...
. Of the remainder of Watson's career nothing is known, save that on the 26th of September 1592 he was buried in the church of St Bartholomew the Less, and that a month later his second Latin epic "Amintae Gaudia" was seen through the press by his friend Marlowe. This tells the story of Amyntas' love, and eventual winning, of Phyllis, and is therefore chronologically the first part of the earlier epic. In the following year his last book, The Tears of Fancie, or Love Disdained (1593), was posthumously published under the initials T.W. This is a collection of sixty sonnets, regular in form, so far at least as to have fourteen lines each. Spenser
Edmund Spenser
Edmund Spenser was an English poet best known for The Faerie Queene, an epic poem and fantastical allegory celebrating the Tudor dynasty and Elizabeth I. He is recognised as one of the premier craftsmen of Modern English verse in its infancy, and one of the greatest poets in the English...
is supposed to have alluded to the untimely death of Watson in Colin Clouts Come Home Again, when he says: "Amyntas quite is gone and lies full low, Having his Amaryllis left to moan".
He is mentioned by Francis Meres
Francis Meres
Francis Meres was an English churchman and author.He was born at Kirton in the Holland division of Lincolnshire in 1565. He was educated at Pembroke College, Cambridge, where he received a B.A. in 1587 and an M.A. in 1591. Two years later he was incorporated an M.A. of Oxford...
in company with Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
, Peele and Marlowe
Christopher Marlowe
Christopher Marlowe was an English dramatist, poet and translator of the Elizabethan era. As the foremost Elizabethan tragedian, next to William Shakespeare, he is known for his blank verse, his overreaching protagonists, and his mysterious death.A warrant was issued for Marlowe's arrest on 18 May...
among "the best for tragedie", but no dramatic work of his except the translations above mentioned is extant today. It is certain that Watson enjoyed a great reputation in his lifetime, and that he was not without a direct influence upon the youth of Shakespeare. He was the first, after the original experiment made by Wyat
Thomas Wyatt (poet)
Sir Thomas Wyatt was a 16th-century English lyrical poet credited with introducing the sonnet into English. He was born at Allington Castle, near Maidstone in Kent – though his family was originally from Yorkshire...
and Surrey
Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey
Henry Howard, KG, , known as The Earl of Surrey although he never was a peer, was an English aristocrat, and one of the founders of English Renaissance poetry.-Life:...
, to introduce the pure imitation of Petrarch into English poetry. "He shows his inventiveness by his variety of treatment...It is the number of different ways in which he can introduce these devices in this matter than measures his success as a poet." He was well read in Italian, French and Greek literature.
Watson plays a prominent part in the novel A Dead Man in Deptford
A Dead Man in Deptford
A Dead Man in Deptford was written late in Anthony Burgess's life, and is the last of his novels to be published during his lifetime.It depicts the life and character of Christopher Marlowe, one of the greatest playwrights of the Elizabethan era....
by Anthony Burgess
Anthony Burgess
John Burgess Wilson – who published under the pen name Anthony Burgess – was an English author, poet, playwright, composer, linguist, translator and critic. The dystopian satire A Clockwork Orange is Burgess's most famous novel, though he dismissed it as one of his lesser works...
, in which he is a close friend of Christopher Marlowe
Christopher Marlowe
Christopher Marlowe was an English dramatist, poet and translator of the Elizabethan era. As the foremost Elizabethan tragedian, next to William Shakespeare, he is known for his blank verse, his overreaching protagonists, and his mysterious death.A warrant was issued for Marlowe's arrest on 18 May...
. In the book Watson introduces Marlowe to Sir Francis Walsingham and he also contributes to several of Marlowe's plays.