Thomas Campbell

Born in Glasgow on July 27, 1777, he studied at the University of Glasgow and gained early fame with The Pleasures of Hope in 1799. His poetry mixed feeling, melody, and public spirit, and many readers especially remembered shorter works such as "Ye Mariners of England," "Hohenlinden," and "The Battle of the Baltic."

He traveled on the Continent, wrote prose as well as verse, and became an important literary figure in London. Alongside his writing career, he took an active interest in education and is remembered as one of the founders of what became University College London.

Although his reputation changed over time, he remained a widely admired poet during his lifetime, and his best-known poems still stand out for their musical language and strong sense of feeling and national identity. He died in 1844.