Sir Philip Sidney was an Elizabethan poet and politician known for his passionate and witty sonnets. Sidney was born on November 30, 1554 in Kent, England. He was the eldest son of two powerful parents, his father Sir Henry Sidney, the lord president of Wales and his mother Lady Mary Dudley, the daughter of the duke of Northumberland. He was also the nephew of Robert Dudley, the Earl of Leicester and Queen Elizabeth’s friend and advisor. He attended the Oxford University Christ Church College, however did not receive his degree as he left to travel Europe in 1571. He returned to England in 1575 with a new knowledge of European policies and fluency in Latin, French, and Italian.

In 1576, Sidney succeeded his father in the prestigious position of cupbearer to the queen. Less than a year later, Sidney was sent to Germany as an ambassador to the German emperor Rudolf II and elector of palatine Louis IV. Queen Elizabeth sent him to offer her condolences to the deaths of Rudolf II and Louis IV fathers while also investigating the German prince’s feelings towards the formation of a Protestant league. The formation of the Protestant league was unsuccessful and Sidney returned to England without a new assignment or post. Angry about his situation, Sidney put his passion into literature and began his career in writing.

In 1578, he wrote the play, The Lady of May for Queen Elizabeth. Two years later, Sidney finished his romantic story, the Arcadia which depicts courtiers expressing their love in various ways. In the early 1580s, Sidney began serving as a Member of Parliament while continuing his writing. During this time, Sidney wrote his most famous work in 1582 titled Astrophel and Stella. Astrophel and Stella centers around Astrophel’s complex feelings of love and desire for Stella. The story is based on Sidney’s passionate love for Penelope Devereux whom he did not marry, but he continued to feel affection for until his death. Soon after, Sideny wrote The Defence of Poesie, a literary criticism that praises the power of literature, stating that it is a better teacher than history and philosophy and defending literature as a stimulatory and beneficial practice.

Although Sidney constantly wrote during his lifetime, he did not allow his work to be published. Sidney wrote as an activity of pleasure and his works were only published posthumously. In 1585, Sidey was appointed the governor of the town of Flushing and was made the head of command for a company of cavalry. After many battles against the Spaniards in September 1586, Sidney volunteered to serve to prevent the Spaniards from sending further materials into the town of Zutphen. He was wounded in battle and died shortly after from an infected bullet wound. He was buried at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London and was respected as a model Elizabethan gentleman.

Astrophel and Stella

Poetry

Philip Sidney

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