William Diaper

Pat Rogers (University of South Florida)

Ed. by Nicholas Seager, University of Keele
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.05: English Writing and Culture from the Glorious Revolution to the French Revolution, 1689-1789.
Vol. editors: Paul Baines (University of Liverpool), Daniel Cook (University of Dundee), Pat Rogers (University of South Florida), Nicholas Seager (University of Keele)

Dates

Born 1685
Died 1717
Activity 1705-1717

Places

Born in England
Active in England

Activities

Primary

Poet

Resources

Diaper's Works

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William Diaper reached the pinnacle of his short life in the years 1712–13. A young clergyman from Somerset, he had studied at Oxford before serving as a curate in the small parish of Brent near Burnham-on-Sea. There are signs that he did not find this a congenial posting, and he was glad to escape to London. There he was taken up by the Tory wits, notably Jonathan Swift and Henry St John, Viscount Bolingbroke. Their patronage may have helped him to gain a footing in the literary world, most obviously in finding publishers – notably Bernard Lintot, who was just beginning his association with Alexander Pope at the time, and John Morphew, who had issued Swift’s

Conduct of the Allies

among other works between 1711 and 1714. The aspiring poet even managed to purloin a commission from…

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1983 words

Citation: Rogers, Pat. "William Diaper". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 11 September 2020 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=1252, accessed 21 November 2024.]