Samuel Boyce facts for kids
Samuel Boyce (died 1775) was an English engraver and poet. An engraver is an artist who carves designs onto metal or wood to create pictures. He was known for his creative writing and his artistic skills.
Samuel Boyce's Life
Samuel Boyce began his career as an engraver. Later, he worked at the South Sea House. This was the main office for the South Sea Company, a big trading company in England.
He wrote a play called The Rover, or Happiness at Last. It was a "dramatic pastoral," which means it was a play about country life, often featuring shepherds. This play was written in 1752 but was never performed on stage. Boyce believed it was too long, not because it wasn't good!
In 1757, he published a collection of his writings called Poems on Several Occasions. This book included a special poem called Glory. It was an "ode," which is a type of poem written to praise someone or something. This ode was dedicated to Prince William, Duke of Cumberland. The collection also had a long poem in two parts called Paris, or the Force of Beauty. This poem was dedicated to the famous actor David Garrick.
Boyce even engraved the front picture for his own book. It showed an artistic scene where "Fortune" (luck) was stopping the "Genius of Poetry" (the spirit of poetry) from reaching the "Temples of Learning and Fame."
Samuel Boyce was a friend of another poet named Christopher Smart. Boyce even wrote a poem praising Smart's famous work, Song to David. This poem was published in a newspaper called the Public Advertiser in July 1763.
Samuel Boyce passed away on March 21, 1775.
Samuel Boyce's Works
Here are some of the works Samuel Boyce created:
- The Rover, or Happiness at Last, a dramatic pastoral (1752)
- An Ode to the Right Hon. the marquis of Harrington, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (1755)
- Paris, or the force of Beauty; a poem in two cantos (1755)
- Poems on several Occasions (London 1757)
- New Song on the Arrival of the Cherokee King and His Chiefs This poem was likely written in 1764. It celebrated a visit arranged by Henry Timberlake when the Cherokee King and his chiefs came to England.
