T. Sturge Moore
T. Sturge Moore was an English poet and artist, known for his contributions to the literary and artistic movements of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born into a Quaker and Baptist family, he experienced a challenging childhood marked by illness, which influenced his educational journey. After studying at Dulwich College and later at the Croyden and Lambeth Art Schools, he developed a passion for engraving and the notion of "art for art's sake," largely influenced by prominent figures like Charles Shannon and Charles Ricketts.
His social circle included notable contemporaries such as Oscar Wilde and William Butler Yeats, with whom he shared a significant partnership, designing book covers and bookplates for Yeats' works. Moore's literary career began to flourish with the publication of his poetry collection, *The Vinedresser*, in 1899, leading to a consistent output of poetry throughout the following decade. Despite facing health issues later in life, his literary achievements were recognized with an honorary fellowship from the Royal Society of Literature and a near appointment as poet laureate in 1930. Moore's legacy continues to be acknowledged, particularly after being hailed by the American critic Yvor Winters as a preeminent verse dramatist since the Renaissance. His life reflects a blend of artistic dedication, personal struggles, and notable literary collaboration.
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Subject Terms
T. Sturge Moore
Poet
- Born: March 4, 1870
- Birthplace: Hastings, East Sussex, England
- Died: July 18, 1944
- Place of death: Windsor, Berkshire, England
Biography
Of Quaker and Baptist ancestry, T. Sturge Moore was the son of a physician who moved the family to London when Moore was only a year old. Moore’s education at Dulwich College (1879-1884) ended when, at the age of fourteen, he became seriously ill. After spending a year at home, however, Moore matriculated at the Croyden Art School, only to leave two years later for Lambeth Art School on the advice of his instructor and mentor, Charles Shannon.
At Lambeth, Moore came under the influence of Shannon’s housemate and close friend, Charles Ricketts, who introduced Moore to the art of engraving as well as the notion of art for art’s sake. Soon Moore was socializing with such contemporary literary greats as Oscar Wilde. Moore’s strongest affiliation, however, was with the poet William Butler Yeats, for whom Moore designed numerous book covers and bookplates. Although he did not share Yeats’s mystical bent, Moore did demonstrate, like Yeats, an interest in the Pre- Raphaelite painters and the French Symbolist poets.
During the late 1890’s and early 1900’s, Moore worked for two small, specialized presses that produced books that were themselves works of art. The year 1899 saw publication of Moore’s collection of poetry The Vinedresser, which received respectable reviews. Over the next decade, he averaged a book a year, but Moore’s main source of financial support was a legacy from two maternal uncles, which made him independent if not wealthy. In 1903, Moore married his cousin Marie Appia, the woman he had loved from afar during her seven- year engagement to his older brother. Together Moore and his wife had two children, Dan, born in 1905, and Riette, born two years later.
In 1911, Moore became an honorary fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, and in 1930, after the death of Robert Bridges, Moore was one of the finalists to succeed him as poet laureate. By this time Moore was suffering from ill health, having survived an operation for jaundice in 1924. Another operation ion 1936, intended to restore his sexual potency, apparently took a toll on Moore, who died in a nursing home of kidney and prostate problems. Always well regarded by his fellow poets, Moore’s reputation soared when the American critic Yvor Winters declared him the greatest verse dramatist since the Renaissance.