Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
Thomas Moore
Introduction Quotes References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics
Images
Thomas Moore, detail of an oil painting by Sir Martin Archer Shee, 1818; in the National Portrait Gallery, London
Quizzes
Illustration of "The Lamb" from "Songs of Innocence" by William Blake, 1879. poem; poetry
A Study of Poetry
4:043 Dickinson, Emily: A Life of Letters, This is my letter to the world/That never wrote to me; I'll tell you how the Sun Rose/A Ribbon at a time; Hope is the thing with feathers/That perches in the soul
Famous Poets and Poetic Form
Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) only confirmed photograph of Emily Dickinson. 1978 scan of a Daguerreotype. ca. 1847; in the Amherst College Archives. American poet. See Notes:
Poetry: First Lines
Quick Facts
Born:
May 28, 1779, Dublin, Ire.
Died:
Feb. 25, 1852, Wiltshire, Eng. (aged 72)
Movement / Style:
Gaelic revival
See all related content
Britannica AI Icon
Adding us as a Preferred Source tells Google you trust our content, so our articles show up more often in your Google Search, Discover feed, and AI Overviews.
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Feedback
Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login).
Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

External Websites
Britannica Websites
Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students.
Thomas Moore, detail of an oil painting by Sir Martin Archer Shee, 1818; in the National Portrait Gallery, London
Thomas Moore, detail of an oil painting by Sir Martin Archer Shee, 1818; in the National Portrait Gallery, London

Thomas Moore

Irish author and composer
Written and fact-checked by
Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
Britannica Editors
History

Thomas Moore (born May 28, 1779, Dublin, Ire.—died Feb. 25, 1852, Wiltshire, Eng.) was an Irish poet, satirist, composer, and political propagandist. He was a close friend of Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley.

1 of 2
“The Last Rose of Summer” by Thomas Moore; from a 1914 recording, soprano solo performed by Marie Rappold.
2 of 2
“Oft in the Stilly Night” by Thomas Moore; from a 1914 recording, performed by the Knickerbocker Quartette.

The son of a Roman Catholic wine merchant, Moore graduated from Trinity College, Dublin, in 1799 and then studied law in London. His major poetic work, Irish Melodies (1807–34), earned him an income of £500 annually for a quarter of a century. It contained such titles as “The Last Rose of Summer” and “Oft in the Stilly Night.” The Melodies, a group of 130 poems set to the music of Moore and of Sir John Stevenson and performed for London’s aristocracy, aroused sympathy and support for the Irish nationalists, among whom Moore was a popular hero.

“Bendemeer's Stream,” an excerpt taken from Thomas Moore's Lalla Rookh (1817); from a 1911 recording, soprano solo with orchestra accompaniment performed by Elizabeth Spencer.

Lalla Rookh (1817), a narrative poem set (on Byron’s advice) in an atmosphere of Oriental splendour, gave Moore a reputation among his contemporaries rivaling that of Byron and Sir Walter Scott. It was perhaps the most translated poem of its time, and it earned what was till then the highest price paid by an English publisher for a poem (£3,000). Moore’s many satirical works, such as The Fudge Family in Paris (1818), portray the politics and manners of the Regency period.

Discover the fascinating events that shaped the world, straight from our editors.
By clicking “Sign Up”, you consent to the Britannica Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Illustration of "The Lamb" from "Songs of Innocence" by William Blake, 1879. poem; poetry
Britannica Quiz
A Study of Poetry

In 1824 Moore became a participant in one of the most celebrated episodes of the Romantic period. He was the recipient of Byron’s memoirs, but he and the publisher John Murray burned them, presumably to protect Byron. Moore later brought out the Letters and Journals of Lord Byron (1830), in which he included a life of the poet. Moore’s lifelong espousal of the Catholic cause led him to produce such brilliant works as his parody of agrarian insurgency, The Memoirs of Captain Rock (1824), and his courageous biography of the revolutionary leader of the 1798 rebellion, The Life and Death of Lord Edward Fitzgerald (1831).

This article was most recently revised and updated by Encyclopaedia Britannica.