{\b Francis Thompson}.

{\b Date of Birth}.: 18 December 1859

{\b Date of Death}.: 13 November 1907

{\b Works}.

An English poet whose most famous poem is The Hand of Heaven. His best works 
are long odes. Other well known poems are the Ode to the Setting Sun and The 
Kingdom of God. His Poems was published in 1893 with the assistance of his 
patrons Wilfred and Alice Meynell. Late in his career he wrote many witty 
reviews and critical articles. He was influenced by Shelley, De Quincy and 
Crashaw. Thompson belonged to the Aesthetic school of the late 1890's.

{\b Featured Works}.

'The Hound of Heaven', 'Arab Love Songs', 'Daisy', 'To a Snowflake', 'Grace of 
the Way', 'Envoy', 'The Poppy', 'The Child-Woman, from "Sister Songs"', 
'Dream-Tryst', 'At Lords'.

{\b General Comment}.

Thompson was born in Preston, Lancashire, the son of a Roman Catholic doctor. 
He studied to be a Roman Catholic priest at Ushaw College from 1870 to 1877, 
but was not ordained. He then studied medicine in Manchester, from 1878 to 
1884, but again left without qualifying. He went to London to find work, but 
was soon destitute and became an opium addict (1885-1888). However, the 
magazine editor Wilfred Meynell and his wife, the poet Alice Meynell, 
recognised his talent. They rescued him from life as a tramp and nursed him. 
In the two years afterwards his poetry was written in a creative explosion. By 
the early 1890's he began to write in an intellectual style on religion. He 
began a relationship with Katie King later in the decade and this influenced 
him to write love poems. His style is ornate and elegant, which displays his 
high intelligence. However, Thompson was often more popular with the public 
than with his critics.