Blondel was a French minstrel and poet of the 12th century. He is a legendary character, tales about him being recorded in 'Chronicles of Rheims' . One story tells how his master was taken prisoner, and Blondel trying to find him walked all Palestine and Germany singing his master's favourite song until at last the song was taken up and answered by the imprisoned master. Research Blondel
Cynewulf was an Anglo-Saxon or early English poet. His name we only know from its being given in runes in the poems attributed to him: Elene (Helena), the legend of the discovery of the true cross; Juliana, the story of the martyr of that name; and Grist (Christ), a long poem incomplete at the beginning. The name Cynewulf also occurs as the solution of one of the metrical riddles in the Anglo-Saxon collection. Other poems, the Andreas, the Wanderer, the Sea-farer, etc, have been ascribed to him without sufficient grounds. Cynewulf probably lived in the first half of the 8th century. From his poems we may gather that he spent the earlier part of his life as a wandering minstrel, devoting the later to the composition of the religious poems connected with his name.
Cynewulf was king of the west Saxons in 755. A noble youth of the line of Cerdic he was murdered. Research Cynewulf
Harry (or Henry) the Minstrel, commonly called Blind Harry was a wandering Scottish poet of the 15th century. He was the author of a poetical narrative of the achievements of Sir William Wallace, of which there is a complete manuscript of date 1488 in the Advocates' Library. The date of the poem may probably be placed between 1470 and 1480. It professes to be based on Latin histories by John Blair and Thomas Gray, otherwise unknown. It has little or no value as history, and contains impossible incidents, yet discoveries during the 19th century vindicated its accuracy in several particulars once discredited. The modern Scottish version by William Hamilton of Gilbertfield was long a favourite book in Scottish homes. Of the poet we know hardly anything beyond a brief notice in John Major's history of 1521, in which he is said to have received food and clothing for reciting his history before the nobles. Research Harry the Minstrel
James Beattie was a Scottish poet and miscellaneous writer. He was born in 1735 at Laurencekirk, Aberdeenshire and died in 1803. He studied at Marischal College, Aberdeen, for four years, and received the MA degree. In 1753 he was appointed schoolmaster at Fordoun, a few miles from his native place; from whence he obtained a mastership in the Grammar School of Aberdeen, and ultimately was installed professor of moral philosophy and logic in Marischal College. In 1760 he published a volume of poems, which he subsequently endeavoured to buy up, considering them unworthy of him.
In 1765 he published a poem, the Judgment of Paris, and in 1770 his celebrated Essay on Truth, for which the University of Oxford conferred on him the degree of LLD; and George III honoured him, when on a visit to London, with a private conference and a pension. He next published in 1771 the first book of his poem the Minstrel, and in 1774 the second; this is the only work by which he is now remembered. In 1776 he published dissertations on Poetry and Music, Laughter and Ludicrous Composition, etc; in 1783 Dissertations, Moral and Critical; in 1786 Evidences of the Christian Religion; and in 1790-1793 Elements of Moral Science. His closing years were darkened by the death of his two sons. Research James Beattie
James Hogg (known as the Ettrick Shepherd) was a Scottish poet. He was born in 1772 at Ettrick, Selkirkshire and died in 1835. After receiving a very scanty education, he began to earn his living by daily labour as a shepherd. His early rhymings brought him under the notice of Sir Walter Scott, by whose advice he published a volume of ballads under the title of The Mountain Bard. The failure of an ill-judged agricultural scheme brought him to Edinburgh, where he published the ForestMinstrel in 1810, and started a weekly periodical entitled The Spy, which, after a short time, became defunct. The appearance of the Queen's Wake in 1813, with its charming ballad of Kilmeny, established James Hogg's reputation as a poet. In 1815 he published his Pilgrims of the Sun, which was followed by Mador of the Moor, the Poetic Mirror (a collection of imitations of living poets), Queen Hynde, and Dramatic Tales, as well as by The Brownie of Bodsbeck, and other prose tales; the Jacobite Belies (partly written by Hogg), etc. From 1817 he had held the farm of Altrive from the Duke of Buccleuch at a merely nominal rent; but his farming schemes were never successful, and he was generally short of money. Research James Hogg
John Clare was an English poet known as the 'Northamptonshire Ploughboy Poet' or the 'Northamptonshire Peasant Poet'. He was born in 1793 in a gypsy camp at Helpstone and died in 1864. The son of a farm-labourer. He led a rambling, unsteady life until 1818, when he was obliged to accept parishrelief. In 1820 his Poems Descriptive of Rural Life and Scenery met with a favourable reception, and the issue of his Village Minstrel in 1821 won him many friends. A subscription furnishing him with 45 pounds annually was, however, dissipated by 1823, and his Shepherd's Calendar (1827), which he hawked himself, was not a success. He brought out a new work, the Rural Muse, in 1835, but became insane shortly afterwards, the remainder of his life, from 1837 to 1864, being passed in the Northampton Lunatic Asylum. Clare was a genuine poet, and his pictures of rural life are eminently truthful and pleasing. Research John Clare
William Howitt was an English writer. He was born in 1792 and died in 1879. Born to a Quaker family, he began early to publish verses, and in conjunction with his wife - Mary Howitt - published shortly after their marriage a volume of poems - The ForestMinstrel (1823). In 1831 appeared his Book of the Seasons, in 834 his History of Priestcraft, and in 1838 his popular Rural Life in England. In 1840 the Howitts settled at Heidelberg, and devoted themselves to introducing the literature of the north, especially of Sweden, to English readers. Student Life in Germany appeared in 1841, Rural and Domestic Life In Germany in 1842. In 1847 William Howitt published his Homes and Haunts of the British Poets, and, after a visit to Australia, his Land, Labour, and Gold; and The History of Discovery in Australia. He also wrote a History of England. Latterly both William Howitt and his wife became converts to spiritualism. Research William Howitt
Al Jolson (real name Asa Yoelson) was a Lithuanian actor. He was born in 1886 and died in 1950. Al Jolson went to the USA as a child, against his father's wishes, and starred in minstrel shows before becoming a singing star. Warner Brothers decided to star him in their first partly-talking-picture, the 1927 'The Jazz Singer' At the end of the 1930s Al Jolson's film career was over. This and the divorce from his wife, Ruby Keeler, had a negative influence on Al Jolson's health. During the Second World War Al Jolson sung for the American Military Forces like many other entertainers. Research Al Jolson
Dan Daily was an American actor and dancer. He was born in 1914 at New York City and died in 1978. As a child he appeared in minstrel shows and during the 1930s appeared on Broadway, most successfully in musicals. Research Dan Daily
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Blondel
