Poets Laureate of the United Kingdom Quiz

Answer: John Dryden

Dryden remained in the post for nearly twenty years - from April 1668 until January 1688. Before he became Poet Laureate, there had been court poets, but Charles II made it an official position.

Dryden was a prolific poet, whose works include 'Annus Mirabilis', published in 1667. It was about the events which befell London in 1666, which included the Great Fire. Dryden's view was that the 'miracle' was that matters could have been so much worse.

Answer: Thomas Shadwell

Shadwell was appointed to the position by the joint monarchs William III and Mary II and was the first Poet Laureate to write poems celebrating the New Year and the birthday of the monarch. This established the precedent that the Poet Laureate should write about the major events of the monarch's reign.

Shadwell wrote plays as well as poetry. Of his poems, the best known is likely to be 'Nymphs and Shepherds' which was set to music by Henry Purcell in the 1690s.

Answer: Colley Cibber

Cibber was not much respected by his peers. He was seen as a poor actor and worse writer, with many of his plays adapted from existing works. Cibber was described as 'mutilating' Moliere and Shakespeare, among other established authors. He was appointed by George II and remained in the role for twenty-seven years, until his death.

His 1704 play 'The Careless Husband' is normally described as being his best, while he wrote about his own life in 'Apology for the Life of Colley Cibber', published in 1740.

Answer: Robert Southey

Southey was a contemporary and friend of William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, the other 'lake poets', and Wordsworth succeeded him as Poet Laureate on Southey's death in 1843. As well as poetry, Southey wrote several biographies, including those of Horatio Nelson, John Wesley and Oliver Cromwell.

Among his poems are 'The Inchcape Rock', published in 1802.

Answer: Alfred, Lord Tennyson

Tennyson's tenure as Poet Laureate lasted nearly as long as Victoria's reign. He wasn't her first appointment, though - that was his predecessor, William Wordsworth, and she also appointed his successor, Alfred Austin.

Tennyson wrote many memorable poems, including 'The Charge of the Light Brigade' (1854) and 'The Lady of Shalott'. He wrote two versions of the latter work, in 1833 and 1842. His poem 'Crossing the Bar', from 1889, is often read at funerals.

Answer: Robert Bridges

Bridges spent many years as a physician, writing in his spare time, before illness forced an early retirement on him allowing him to write full time. His Christian faith came through in his poetry, and many of his poems were set to music. He was appointed by George V.

Bridges also wrote words to accompany existing music, including the English words to Bach's cantata known to us as 'Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring'. Other hymns for which Bridges wrote the English translations are 'All My Hope on God is Founded' and 'O Sacred Head Sore Wounded'.

Answer: John Masefield

Masefield was appointed by George V and stayed in the post so long that George VI was bypassed completely as far as creating a Poet Laureate was concerned. Masefield was a prolific author - his children's books include 'The Box of Delights' (1935) and 'The Midnight Folk' (1927).

Masefield also wrote non fiction, including autobiographies and numerous other works. Among his best known poems is 'Sea-Fever' ('I must down to the seas again') and 'Cargoes'.

Answer: Cecil Day-Lewis

Cecil Day-Lewis was the first Poet Laureate to be appointed by Elizabeth II. He was born in the province of Leinster, in the Republic of Ireland, although he spent most of his life in England. Day-Lewis remained in the post for only four years, as he died in 1972. His son, Daniel Day-Lewis, became an actor.

As well as poetry, Day-Lewis wrote novels using his own name and also the pseudonym of Nicholas Blake, which he used for mystery stories. His epitaph is taken from one of his own poems, named 'Is it Far to Go?'.

Answer: Ted Hughes

Ted Hughes remained Poet Laureate until his death in 1998, having succeeded John Betjeman. He was married to Sylvia Plath and wrote about their relationship in his 1998 poetry collection, called 'Birthday Letters'.

Hughes was another wide ranging author, whose works included novels, children's books, short stories and plays as well as several volumes of poetry collections.

Answer: Carol Ann Duffy

Duffy's immediate predecessor was Andrew Motion, the first Poet Laureate to request that the position be for a fixed term rather than for life. Carol Ann Duffy became the first woman to hold the position and will also be in place for ten years.

Since becoming Poet Laureate, Duffy has produced poems about the MP's expenses scandal and David Beckham's Achilles tendon injury. She has also written works on rather more expected topics such as the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton and a poem which was read for the burial of Richard III in 2015.