Sir Philip Sidney



Vital Statistics :

Born : November 30, 1554 at Penshurst, Kent

Died : In 1586 due to an unhealed wound

Namesake :Named after his godfather, Philip II of Spain

Siblings : Sister Mary (1561), who later became Countess of Pembroke;
Brother Robert (1563), who later became Earl of Leicester, married wealthy Barbara Gamage (first cousin to Sir Walter Ralegh), and had a daughter, Mary (Wroth)

Family Tree : Son of Sir Henry Sidney, thrice governor of Ireland;
Nephew of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester (one of Elizabeth's "boyfriends")

Education : Attended the Shrewsbury School (one of the most elite private schools in England) for four years (1564 - 1568);
Attended Christ Church in Oxford for four years (1568 - 1571) without taking a degree;
Finished his education by travelling to places such as Paris, Venice, and Vienna

Life in England

Returned to England in 1575, where he attended the court of Elizabeth I as a prominent courtier, ambassador, member of Parliament, and joint Master of Ordinance

Was sent to the German Emperor & Prince of Orange in 1577 to console the princes on the deaths of their fathers and to "feel out" the people of these places regarding Protestantism

Upon his return to the court, Elizabeth I decided to keep him home due to his radical Protestant ideas - this lead to him never being given responsibilities that matched his abilities or connections within the court

Encouraged authors to write, most notably Edmund Spenser, who wrote Amoretti

In 1580 he was dismissed from the court for displeasing the queen and retreated to his sister Mary Herbert's (Countess of Pembroke) estate near Salisbury, Wiltshire



In 1585 he was summoned back to court after attempting to sail with Sir Francis Drake to the West Indies and was appointed governor of Flushing (Netherlands)

In 1586 he was wounded in the fight against the Spanish at Zutphen (which did not heal and ultimately caused his death)

The Man

Well read in the classics and in contemporary literature, philosophy, and history

Knew Latin, French, Italian, Spanish, "gentleman's" Greek

Married Frances Walsingham in 1583

True Renaissance man, who "valued a life of thought and action on a grand scale" (Donald Stump) by attending plays, constantly reading, studying military tactics and fighing as a soldier, encouraging artists, musicians, poets, historians, philosophers, and participating in the court

Was said to exemplify the ideal courtier

Works

His works were not published while he was alive, manuscripts were circulated among friends and family, however, it was not until about a decade after his death that his works became widely available.

He was widely imitated, especially in sonnets, chivalric romances, and pastoral eclogues, after his works were published.

The Countess of Pembroke's Arcadia - 1590 - was written for his sister during his stay at her estate.

Astrophil and Stella - 1591 - was written about Penelope Devereux (later Lady Rich).

The Defense of Poesy - 1595

An Apology for Poetry - 1595

Astrophil & Stella

Considered to be a sonnet cycle because it tracks the rise and fall of a relationship in continuous, linked sonnets

Includes 108 sonnets and 11 songs, which are dispersed throughout the cycles, and the only place where Stella's voice is heard

Said to be written about Penelope Devereux (later Lady Rich)



The name "Stella" means 'star' in Latin, and the name "Astrophil" comes from two Greek words, astro ('star') + phil ('lover')

Said to be written in 'sprezzatura,' or in solitude, where the work is concealed and the artist is in a self-deprecating state

When Sidney wrote A&S there were no other sonnet sequences written in English

Served as a model for Spenser, Shakespeare, and other poets' sonnet sequences

Rhyme scheme in sonnets varies - a b b a a b b a c d c d e e (9; 108) or a b a b b a b a c c d e e d (87); Rhyme scheme in songs is typically a a b b c c (4) or a b a b c (11)

Alliteration used sparingly, for emphasis (87)

Links
Donald Stump's Site
Encyclopedia.com article
Luminarium
Latech.edu A&S site
Goucher.edu Sidney site

Created for Professor Steele's Engl228 summer 2002 course

For my personal site, click here:)