David Lewis (1682 – April 1760) was an 18th-century British poet.

Life

Lewis was the son of Roger Lewis of

Llanddewi Felffre The Gower Peninsula ( cy, Gŵyr) in the City and County of Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It contains over twenty villages and communities. Villages Bishopston Bishopston (, or historically ''Llanme ...

, in the county of

Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire ( ; cy, Sir Benfro ) is a Local government in Wales#Principal areas, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and the rest by sea. The count ...

, and was probably born in Wales. He studied at

Jesus College, Oxford Jesus College (in full: Jesus College in the University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeth's Foundation) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship St ...

matriculating Matriculation is the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by fulfilling certain academic requirements such as a matriculation examination. Australia In Australia, the term "matriculation" is seldom used now. ...

in 1698 and obtaining his

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree in 1702. He was undermaster at

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

(1726–1732). During this time, he started to publish poetry, beginning in 1726 with ''Miscellaneous Poems by Several Hands'', which mixed various styles of poetry from different London-based poets from Oxford and Cambridge. Some unidentified poems were by Lewis himself. The collection contained the final revision of

John Dyer John Dyer (1699 – 15 December 1757) was a painter and Welsh poet who became a priest in the Church of England.Shaw, Thomas B. ''A Complete Manual of English Literature''. Ed. William Smith. New York: Sheldon & Co., 1872. 372. Print. He was m ...

's ''

Grongar Hill Grongar Hill is located in the Welsh county of Carmarthenshire and was the subject of a loco-descriptive poem by John Dyer. Published in two versions in 1726, during the Augustan period, its celebration of the individual experience of the landsc ...

'' as well as the first draft of

Alexander Pope Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 O.S. – 30 May 1744) was an English poet, translator, and satirist of the Enlightenment era who is considered one of the most prominent English poets of the early 18th century. An exponent of Augustan literature, ...

's ''Vital spark of heavenly flame'' (1712). Lewis and Pope were in contact thereafter, and Pope's support was acknowledged by Lewis in the introduction to ''

Philip of Macedon Philip II of Macedon ( grc-gre, Φίλιππος ; 382 – 21 October 336 BC) was the king (''basileus'') of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia from 359 BC until his death in 336 BC. He was a member of the Argead dynasty, founders of the a ...

'', a tragedy by Lewis performed in May 1727. A second volume of poetry, by various people (including Lewis) was published in 1730. Lewis died at Low

Leyton Leyton () is a town in east London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It borders Walthamstow to the north, Leytonstone to the east, and Stratford to the south, with Clapton, Hackney Wick and Homerton, across the River L ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

in April 1760, and was buried at

Leyton Parish Church The Parish Church of St Mary with St Edward and St Luke, Leyton, also known as Leyton Parish Church and formerly, St Mary the Virgin, Leyton, is a Church of England parish church in Leyton, East London. Although records of the church go back to ab ...

. His wife, Mary, died in 1774 and was buried with him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, David 1682 births 1760 deaths Welsh poets Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford