Poets Laureate of the United Kingdom
Updated June 14, 2021 |
Infoplease Staff
The National Poets of the UK
The Poet Laureate, a member of the royal household, composes poems for state occasions. Carol Ann Duffy became the first woman in the position's 341-year history when chosen for the post in 2009. The Poet Laureate of Britain is normally appointed for life; however, Andrew Motion, named to the post in 1999, accepted the position for ten years.
| Edmund Spenser | 1591–1599 |
| Samuel Daniel | 1599–1619 |
| Ben Jonson | 1619–1637 |
| William Davenant | 1638–1668 |
| John Dryden 1 | 1668–1689 |
| Thomas Shadwell | 1689–1692 |
| Nahum Tate | 1692–1715 |
| Nicholas Rowe | 1715–1718 |
| Laurence Eusden | 1718–1730 |
| Colley Cibber | 1730–1757 |
| William Whitehead | 1757–1785 |
| Thomas Warton | 1785–1790 |
| Henry James Pye | 1790–1813 |
| Robert Southey | 1813–1843 |
| William Wordsworth | 1843–1850 |
| Alfred Lord Tennyson | 1850–1892 |
| Alfred Austin | 1896–1913 |
| Robert Bridges | 1913–1930 |
| John Masefield | 1930–1967 |
| Cecil Day-Lewis | 1967–1972 |
| Sir John Betjeman | 1972–1984 |
| Ted Hughes | 1984–1998 |
| Andrew Motion | 1999–2009 |
| Carol Ann Duffy | 2009–2019 |
| Simon Armitage | 2019- |
1. First to bear the title officially.
| Poets Laureate of the United States | Literature and Books | The Largest Libraries in the U.S. |
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