Digby Mackworth Dolben
Encyclopedia
Digby Augustus Stewart Mackworth Dolben (8 February 1848 – 28 June 1867) was an English poet
who died young from drowning. He owes his poetic reputation to his cousin, Robert Bridges
, poet laureate
from 1913 to 1930, who edited a partial edition of his verse, Poems, in 1911.
He was born in Guernsey
, and brought up at Finedon
Hall in Northamptonshire
. His father, William Harcourt Isham Mackworth (1806—1872), a younger son of Sir Digby Mackworth, the 3rd Baronet
, took the additional surname Dolben after he married Frances, the heiress of Sir John English Dolben, the 4th Baronet
.
He was educated at Eton College
, studying under the influential Master William Johnson Cory
whose principles of pedagogy and collection of verses Ionica inspired his own poetry. At Eton, his distant cousin Bridges was his senior and took him under his wing.
Dolben caused considerable scandal at school by his exhibitionist behaviour. He marked his romantic attachment to another pupil a year older than he was, Martin Le Marchant Gosselin, by writing love poetry. He also defied his strict Protestant upbringing by joining a High Church
Puseyite group of pupils. He then claimed allegiance to the Order of St Benedict, affecting a monk's habit
. He was considering a conversion to Roman Catholicism.
In 1865 on his seventeenth birthday, he was introduced by Bridges, by then an undergraduate at Corpus Christi College, Oxford
, to Gerard Manley Hopkins
who was at Balliol
. According to the account given by his biographer Norman White, this encounter caused Hopkins a great deal of perturbation.
Hopkins's biographer Robert Bernard Martin asserts that Hopkins’s meeting with Dolben, "was, quite simply, the most momentous emotional event of [his] undergraduate years, probably of his entire life".
Hopkins kept up a correspondence with Dolben, wrote about him in his diary and composed two poems about the youth, "Where art thou friend" and "The Beginning of the End." Hopkins' High Anglican confessor seems to have forbidden him to have any contact with Dolben except by letter. Dolben's death greatly affected Hopkins, although his feeling for Dolben seems to have cooled by that time.
Dolben drowned in the River Welland
when bathing with the ten year old son of his tutor, Rev. C. E. Prichard, Rector of South Luffenham
. He was aged 19 and preparing to go up to Oxford.
Bridges guaranteed Dolben's reputation with Three Friends: Memoirs of Digby Mackworth Dolben, Richard Watson Dixon, Henry Bradley (1932), as well as the careful editing of his poetry. Subsequently The Poems and Letters of Digby Mackworth Dolben 1848-1867 (1981), edited by Martin Cohen, has given a less selective picture.
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...
who died young from drowning. He owes his poetic reputation to his cousin, Robert Bridges
Robert Bridges
Robert Seymour Bridges, OM, was a British poet, and poet laureate from 1913 to 1930.-Personal and professional life:...
, poet laureate
Poet Laureate
A poet laureate is a poet officially appointed by a government and is often expected to compose poems for state occasions and other government events...
from 1913 to 1930, who edited a partial edition of his verse, Poems, in 1911.
He was born in Guernsey
Guernsey
Guernsey, officially the Bailiwick of Guernsey is a British Crown dependency in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy.The Bailiwick, as a governing entity, embraces not only all 10 parishes on the Island of Guernsey, but also the islands of Herm, Jethou, Burhou, and Lihou and their islet...
, and brought up at Finedon
Finedon
Finedon is a civil parish and village in the Borough Council of Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, with a population at the 2001 census of 4,188 people. Along with Wellingborough, it is twinned with Wittlich, Germany, and Niort, France....
Hall in Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
. His father, William Harcourt Isham Mackworth (1806—1872), a younger son of Sir Digby Mackworth, the 3rd Baronet
Mackworth Baronets
There have been two Baronetcies created for persons with the surname Mackworth, one in the Baronetage of England and one in the Baronetage of Great Britain. One creation is extant as of 2008....
, took the additional surname Dolben after he married Frances, the heiress of Sir John English Dolben, the 4th Baronet
Dolben Baronets
The Dolben Baronetcy, of Findon in the County of Northamptonshire, was a title in the Baronetage of England. It was created on 1 April 1704 for Sir Gilbert Dolben, son of John Dolben, Archbishop of York and MP for Ripon, Peterborough and Yarmouth, IoW. The 3rd Baronet was an MP for Oxford...
.
He was educated at Eton College
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
, studying under the influential Master William Johnson Cory
William Johnson Cory
William Johnson Cory , born William Johnson, was an educator and poet, born at Torrington, and educated at Eton, where he was afterwards a renowned master, nicknamed Tute by his pupils...
whose principles of pedagogy and collection of verses Ionica inspired his own poetry. At Eton, his distant cousin Bridges was his senior and took him under his wing.
Dolben caused considerable scandal at school by his exhibitionist behaviour. He marked his romantic attachment to another pupil a year older than he was, Martin Le Marchant Gosselin, by writing love poetry. He also defied his strict Protestant upbringing by joining a High Church
High church
The term "High Church" refers to beliefs and practices of ecclesiology, liturgy and theology, generally with an emphasis on formality, and resistance to "modernization." Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term has traditionally been principally associated with the...
Puseyite group of pupils. He then claimed allegiance to the Order of St Benedict, affecting a monk's habit
Religious habit
A religious habit is a distinctive set of garments worn by members of a religious order. Traditionally some plain garb recognisable as a religious habit has also been worn by those leading the religious eremitic and anachoritic life, although in their case without conformity to a particular uniform...
. He was considering a conversion to Roman Catholicism.
In 1865 on his seventeenth birthday, he was introduced by Bridges, by then an undergraduate at Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Corpus Christi College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom...
, to Gerard Manley Hopkins
Gerard Manley Hopkins
Gerard Manley Hopkins, S.J. was an English poet, Roman Catholic convert, and Jesuit priest, whose posthumous 20th-century fame established him among the leading Victorian poets...
who was at Balliol
Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College , founded in 1263, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England but founded by a family with strong Scottish connections....
. According to the account given by his biographer Norman White, this encounter caused Hopkins a great deal of perturbation.
Hopkins's biographer Robert Bernard Martin asserts that Hopkins’s meeting with Dolben, "was, quite simply, the most momentous emotional event of [his] undergraduate years, probably of his entire life".
Hopkins was completely taken with Dolben, who was nearly four years his junior, and his private journal for confessions the following year proves how absorbed he was in imperfectly suppressed erotic thoughts of him
Hopkins kept up a correspondence with Dolben, wrote about him in his diary and composed two poems about the youth, "Where art thou friend" and "The Beginning of the End." Hopkins' High Anglican confessor seems to have forbidden him to have any contact with Dolben except by letter. Dolben's death greatly affected Hopkins, although his feeling for Dolben seems to have cooled by that time.
Dolben drowned in the River Welland
River Welland
The River Welland is a river in the east of England, some long. It rises in the Hothorpe Hills, at Sibbertoft in Northamptonshire, then flows generally northeast to Market Harborough, Stamford and Spalding, to reach The Wash near Fosdyke. For much of its length it forms the county boundary between...
when bathing with the ten year old son of his tutor, Rev. C. E. Prichard, Rector of South Luffenham
South Luffenham
South Luffenham is a village in the county of Rutland in the East Midlands of England.The village lies largely on the north side of the A6121 road from Uppingham to Stamford. It is divided into two by a small stream, the Foss, which is a tributary of the River Chater...
. He was aged 19 and preparing to go up to Oxford.
Bridges guaranteed Dolben's reputation with Three Friends: Memoirs of Digby Mackworth Dolben, Richard Watson Dixon, Henry Bradley (1932), as well as the careful editing of his poetry. Subsequently The Poems and Letters of Digby Mackworth Dolben 1848-1867 (1981), edited by Martin Cohen, has given a less selective picture.