Rev. John Moultrie (1799-1874) Poet and son of George Moultrie, Rector of Cleobury Mortimer

Quite by chance, while researching the Postman's Knock beer (tribute to Cleobury writer Simon Evans), I came across a Victorian poet - The Rev. John Moultrie (1799-1874), son of George Moultrie, the Rector of Cleobury Mortimer! I hadn't come across him before but press-ganged him for this blog!

There are at least two poems in his collection written at the vicarage in Cleobury Mortimer and one about Lady Godiva! Unlike with Simon Evans however, I can't point you to any beer named after him! He was a Reverend remember!

Here's a short biography of John Moultrie - 



John Moultrie (December 30, 1799 - December 26, 1874) was born in London and educated at Eton College. Many of his best verses were contributed to the Etonian. He entered Trinity College (Cambridge) in 1819, and in 1822 entered Middle Temple. Three years later he was ordained, and was presented to the living of Rugby by Lord Craven. At Rugby he became friends with Thomas Arnold, to whom he addressed two sonnets.
He published several volumes of verse during his lifetime. A complete edition of his poems was published in two volumes in 1876 with a memoir by Derwent Coleridge. The volumes include some pieces popular at the time, "Godiva," "Three Minstrels," an account of meetings with Wordsworth, Coleridge and Tennyson, "My Brother’s Grave," and some hymns.
(A longer bio can be found here on Wiki - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Moultrie_(poet))


BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Poems (1833); The Dream Of Life Lays of the English Church and Other Poems (1843); Altars, Hearths and Graves (1854); The Three Sons (1858); Poems [first collected edition] in 2 vols (1876).

His poems can be read Here


This is an extract from the poem Godiva a tale

GODIVA, — A TALE.

I

Whoe'er has been at Coventry must know
(Unless he's quite devoid of curiosity,)
That once a year it has a sort of show,
Conducted with much splendor and pomposity.
I'll just describe it, if I can—but no,
It would exhaust the humour of a Fawcett, I
Am a vile jester—though I once was vain
Of acting Fawcett's parts at Datchet-lane.

(It's quite a long poem, so follow the link to read the full text). There are two poems in the collection above that are designated to the Vicarage in Cleobury. Type in Cleobury in the search and it will highlight them.)

TEXT RECORDS:

1820Godiva, — a Tale.
1823Introductory Stanzas to the Second Canto of La Belle Tryamour. To ****.
1823La Belle Tryamour, a Metrical Romance: by Gerard Montgomery. [Sir Launfal.]
1823La Belle Tryamour. Canto II.
1824La Belle Tryamour. Canto III.
1824The Witch of the North.
1824Three Sonnets by Gerard Montgomery.


PUBLICATIONS:
Poetry of the college magazine [with H. N. Coleridge]. 1819.
Poems. 1837.
Poetical works of Thomas Gray [ed. Moultrie]. 1845.
Saint Mary, the virgin and the wife. 1850.
The black fence: a lay of modern Rome. 1850.
Psalms and hymns. 1851.
The song of the Rugby church-builders. 1851.
A pentecostal ode. 1852.
The poetical remains of William Sidney Walker [ed. Moultrie]. 1852.
Sermons. 1852.
Altars, hearths, and graves. 1854.
Poems, ed. Derwent Coleridge. 2 vols, 1876.