The term "Lake Poets" describes a group of English poets who lived in the Lake District of North West England during the first half of the nineteenth century. As a group, they did not follow one specific way of thinking or writing style that was popular at the time. The Edinburgh Review gave them this name, but it also criticized them harshly. These poets are considered part of the English Romantic movement.

The three most well-known poets from this group are William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and Robert Southey. They were connected to other poets and writers, such as Dorothy Wordsworth, Charles Lamb, Mary Lamb, Charles Lloyd, Hartley Coleridge, John Wilson, and Thomas De Quincey.

Origins and accuracy of the name

The "Lake Poet School" (also called "Bards of the Lake" or the "Lake School") was originally a negative term used to describe a group of poets. One person, Francis Jeffrey, once called it "the School of whining and hypochondriacal poets that haunt the Lakes," as reported by Coleridge. This name was also incorrect, as the group was not specifically connected to the Lake District, and its members did not form a unified school of poetry. The main members of the group were William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and Robert Southey. Dorothy Wordsworth, William's sister, was not a main member but played an important role in inspiring his work. She wrote journals, letters, and poems that were published after her death, but she did not publish her own work during her lifetime.

Readers who read the poetry of the Lake Poet School were often inspired to visit the Lake District. This led to changes in the area that made Wordsworth worry the special qualities of the Lakes were being harmed. However, Wordsworth later wrote one of the best guides to the region. Many other Romantic poets, besides Wordsworth, had complicated feelings about the Lake Poet identity. Some struggled with it, while others defined their own poetic styles in contrast to what the Lakes seemed to represent.

The Lake poets

William Wordsworth, who lived in Dove Cottage in Grasmere with his sister Dorothy after traveling for many years, became closely connected to the Lake District as a poet. He was born and raised near the Lake District, in Cockermouth and Penrith, and returned to the area in December 1799. He spent his life there in a quiet, poetic way, calling it his "native mountains." Although Wordsworth did not discover the Lake District or make it famous, he became a major figure in the region. His unique view of the natural world influenced how people saw the area in the future. His poetry was not only about nature but also about the relationship between people and the environment. Early in his life, he was influenced by the "Picturesque" style, but later he saw it as just one way to view nature. His vision of nature avoided changing it to fit artistic ideas.

Wordsworth’s early political beliefs led him to write about everyday people instead of kings, queens, or gods. He used simple language and focused on the lives of common people, such as those living in the Dales. Another important part of his work was his focus on his own thoughts and feelings, which he described in his poem The Prelude. He wrote to Dorothy that this poem was about the growth of his own mind.

Even though he was often alone, Wordsworth cared deeply about his family and community. He was troubled by changes that harmed the natural world, such as the planting of rows of Larch trees, the building of railways, and the construction of large houses by wealthy people from Lancashire. In 1810, he published Guide to the Lakes, which included advice on how to protect the beauty of the region. Some scholars believe this book was written after Wordsworth lost his poetic vision of nature and turned to practical ideas to stay mentally strong. The book also reflected the ideas of a writer named Uvedale Price, who believed in preserving the natural and historical character of the landscape. The Guide was very popular and influenced how buildings and gardens were designed in the Lake District for many years.

Other writers had different views of the Lake District. Samuel Taylor Coleridge moved to the area in 1800 and lived in Greta Hall. Though he was called a "Lake Poet," his view of the landscape was different from Wordsworth’s. Coleridge saw the area’s "Gothic elements" and focused on its ability to create a sense of fear or unease. His personal struggles, including poor health and problems with his writing, led him to leave the area in 1804.

Robert Southey, who lived in Greta Hall from 1803 to 1843, was known as a "Lake Poet" but wrote mostly in prose. Unlike Wordsworth, he did not share the same vision of the Lake District. He started as a supporter of political change but later became a strong believer in traditional values, using the Lake District as a symbol of national identity.

Letitia Elizabeth Landon, in a drawing titled Grasmere Lake, A Sketch by a Cockney from 1834, made fun of the Lake Poets, whom she admired but thought were outdated. She believed the Romantic era was over.

In Mare, a satirical story by James Hogg published in 1825, the Lake Poets were described as a group of birds, such as sandpipers or water larks, highlighting their role in the literary world.

Associated writers

The second generation of Romantic poets were attracted to the Lake District because of the Romantic idea of living alone and the belief that older poets supported freedom and equality. However, they discovered that the area was different from what they expected. In 1811, Shelley stayed in Keswick for three months. He had been inspired by the early writings of Robert Southey, who had once supported freedom and equality, but found that Southey’s views had changed. He also noticed that the natural beauty of the Lakes had been harmed by industrial activity, such as factories.

In the summer of 1818, Keats had a similar experience. He visited the home of his hero, William Wordsworth, and found it filled with fashionable people, while Wordsworth himself was away working for a local political leader. Keats then traveled to Scotland, where he found the inspiration he needed. He was especially influenced by the poet Robert Burns.

Byron never visited the Lake District, but he criticized the older Lake Poets for their isolation and lack of interest in political change.

John Wilson, a strong and active man, lived near Windermere from 1808 to 1815. He knew the older Lake Poets well and wrote poetry that showed his love for the natural beauty of the area. Unlike Wordsworth, who focused on quiet and solitude, Wilson’s work emphasized friendship and physical energy. He was a regular hiker and climber.

Wilson was friends with Harriet Martineau and Thomas De Quincey. Martineau built a house near Ambleside in 1845. Because of her background in studying society, she believed the Lakes should be more connected to the outside world. She supported better sanitation and the construction of new railways in the region, unlike her friend Wordsworth. Her book, Complete Guide to the Lakes (1855), provided clear and factual information about the area and the lives of its people.

De Quincey moved into Dove Cottage in 1809 after meeting Wordsworth a few times at Allan Bank and Rydal Mount. He admired Wordsworth deeply at first, but his admiration faded after De Quincey married a local woman and the Wordsworths refused to meet her. Instead, De Quincey became closer to the people of the surrounding dales. He shifted his focus from using imagination to change the real world to using the real world of the Lakes to fuel his imagination.

Other writers

The beauty of the Lake District has inspired many writers over the years, including those who lived at the same time as the Lake Poets, such as Bryan Procter, Felicia Hemans, and Walter Scott. It also inspired writers from the working class and later generations, like John Close, who focused on the increasing number of tourists. Other poets who wrote about the area include James Payn, Margaret Cropper, and Norman Nicholson.

In 1871, at the age of 48, John Ruskin decided to move to Brantwood, a house near Coniston Water, after visiting the Lake District many times. He was physically and mentally tired and sought a peaceful place to rest. His tiredness and sadness resonated with visitors to the Lakes, who also came for comfort and rest, rather than for the excitement that earlier travelers had enjoyed. Although Ruskin wrote little about the area, he became known as the "new Sage of the Lakes," a title similar to Wordsworth’s. Norman Nicholson described Ruskin as the "Picturesque Figure," noting that Ruskin combined three important aspects: art, science, and morality. Nicholson believed that Ruskin’s scientific study of the rocks and water in the Lake District aimed not to understand the subject, but to teach people how to respond to it in a practical and moral way.