Amos Simon Cottle (1766–1800) was an English translator and poet. His publications include, ''Icelandic poetry or The Edda of Sæmund'' which was first printed in 1797 with

Robert Southey Robert Southey ( or ; 12 August 1774 – 21 March 1843) was an English poet of the Romantic school, and Poet Laureate from 1813 until his death. Like the other Lake Poets, William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Southey began as a ra ...

as a co-author.

Life

The elder brother of the author

Joseph Cottle Joseph Cottle (1770–1853) was an English publisher and author. Cottle started business in Bristol. He published the works of Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Robert Southey on generous terms. He then wrote in his ''Early Recollections'' an exposur ...

, he was born in

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

. He received a classical education at Mr. Henderson's school at

Hanham Hanham is a suburb of Bristol. It is located in the south east of the city. Hanham is in the unitary authority of South Gloucestershire. It became a civil parish on 1 April 2003. The post code area of Hanham is BS15. The population of this c ...

, near

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, and subsequently as a mature student at

Magdalene College, Cambridge Magdalene College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1428 as a Benedictine hostel, in time coming to be known as Buckingham College, before being refounded in 1542 as the College of St Mary ...

, taking his B.A. degree in 1799. He died at his chambers in

Clifford's Inn Clifford's Inn is a former Inn of Chancery in London. It was located between Fetter Lane, Clifford's Inn Passage, leading off Fleet Street and Chancery Lane in the City of London. The Inn was founded in 1344 and refounded 15 June 1668. It was di ...

on 28 September 1800.

Works

His principal work is ''Icelandic Poetry, or the Edda of Saemund, translated into English verse'', Bristol, 1797. It is not stated whether the translation is made from the original Icelandic or from a Latin version; it is not faithful nor vigorous. It is preceded by a critical introduction, and a poetical address from Southey to the author, which contains the panegyric of

Mary Wollstonecraft Mary Wollstonecraft (, ; 27 April 1759 – 10 September 1797) was a British writer, philosopher, and advocate of women's rights. Until the late 20th century, Wollstonecraft's life, which encompassed several unconventional personal relationsh ...

, ‘who among women left no equal mind.’ She died on 10 September 1797, and Cottle's preface is dated on 1 November. His final work, the blank-verse epic poem ''Alfred the Great'' (written in twenty-four books, after the

Iliad The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Odysse ...

and

Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; grc, Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, ) is one of two major Ancient Greek literature, ancient Greek Epic poetry, epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by moder ...

), was published in London in the year of his death. Other poems of Cottle, including one on missionary enterprise and a Latin ode on the French conquest of Italy, were published with his brother's ''Malvern Hills''.

References

;Attribution * 1766 births 1800 deaths English male poets Translators of the Poetic Edda 18th-century translators {{England-poet-stub