Who is Sir Philip Sidney

Sir Philip Sidney (30 November 1554 – 17 October 1586) was an English poet, courtier, scholar and soldier who is remembered as one of the most prominent figures of the Elizabethan age. His works include Astrophel and Stella, The Defence of Poesy (also known as The Defence of Poetry or An Apology for Poetry) and The Countess of Pembroke's Arcadia.

Early life

Born at Penshurst Place, Kent, of an aristocratic family, he was educated at Shrewsbury School and Christ Church, Oxford. He was the eldest son of Sir Henry Sidney and Lady Mary Dudley. His mother was the eldest daughter of John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland, and the sister of Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester. His younger brother, Robert Sidney was a statesman and patron of the arts, and was created E...
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Sir Philip Sidney Poems

  • Sonnet 101: Stella Is Sick
    Stella is sick, and in that sickbed lies
    Sweetness, which breathes and pants as oft as she:
    And Grace, sick too, such fine conclusions tries
    That Sickness brags itself best grac'd to be. ...
  • Sonnet 102: Wher Be Those Roses Gone
    Where be those roses gone, which sweeten'd so our eyes?
    Where those red cheeks, which oft with fair increase did frame
    The height of honor in the kindly badge of shame?
    Who hath the crimson weeds stol'n from my morning skies? ...
  • Sonnet Xi: In Truth, Oh Love
    In truth, oh Love, with what a boyish kind
    Thou doest proceed in thy most serious ways:
    That when the heav'n to thee his best displays,
    Yet of that best thou leav'st the best behind. ...
  • Astrophel And Stella: Xcii
    Be your words made, good sir, of Indian ware,
    That you allow me them by so small rate?
    Or do you cutted Spartans imitate?
    Or do you mean my tender ears to spare, ...
  • Sonnet 77: Those Looks, Whose Beams Be Joy
    Those looks, whose beams be joy, whose motion is delight,
    That face, whose lecture shows what perfect beauty is:
    That presence, which doth give dark hearts a living light:
    That grace, which Venus weeps that she herself doth miss: ...
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Top 10 most used topics by Sir Philip Sidney

Sonnet 122 I Love You 119 Love 119 Heart 91 Sweet 55 Nature 46 Face 45 Light 44 Place 43 Good 42


Sir Philip Sidney Quotes

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Comments about Sir Philip Sidney

Kmwan35851: my true-love hath my heart and i have his, by just exchange one for the other given: i hold his dear, and mine he cannot miss; there never was a bargain better driven.,philip sidney, the poems of sir philip sidney,heart, love, poetry,
Indian_anchors: they are never alone that are accompanied with noble thoughts. ~sir philip sidney
Welfordwrites: sad steps, a poem by philip larkin. inspired by a 16th century poem by sir philip sidney, larkin comes to very different conclusions.
Warwickshirecro: it's great to see this conservation work! warwick castle's fulke greville was a lifelong friend of sir philip sidney, and the pair attended shrewsbury school together. you can find out more about fulke greville in our greville family collection!
Hakungbagiso: excerpt from the nightingale, sir philip sidney
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Poem of the day

Edgar Albert Guest Poem
Improvement
 by Edgar Albert Guest

The joy of life is living it, or so it seems to me;
In finding shackles on your wrists, then struggling till you're free;
In seeing wrongs and righting them, in dreaming splendid dreams,
Then toiling till the vision is as real as moving streams.
The happiest mortal on the earth is he who ends his day
By leaving better than he found to bloom along the way.
Were all things perfect here there would be naught for man to do;
If what is old were good enough we'd never need the new.
...

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