Information
Best known for his ‘Elegy written in a Country Churchyard’ which achieved instant success when published in 1751, Thomas Gray spent much of the rest of his life researching for a planned history of English poetry (which was never published) and travelling around England and Scotland. He recorded his impressions in letters which show the same erudition as his poetry as well as a gentle humour. Staying with a friend at Denton, halfway between Canterbury and Folkestone, he visited Margate in June 1766 but was not impressed. With its reference to the notoriously riotous annual fair held at Smithfield, his comment evokes the character of unconfined gaiety Margate was beginning to make its own by the late 18th century.
Quotations
I took the opportunity to go into the Isle of Thanet , saw Margate (wch is Bartholomew-Fair by the seaside) …
Place | Extract |
| Kingsgate | It is reasonable to suppose that it was on the occasion of a subsequent visit to the area in June 1768 that he wrote his verses ‘On Lord Holland’s Seat’... |
| Margate | Staying with a friend at Denton, halfway between Canterbury and Folkestone, he visited Margate in June 1766 but was not impressed... |
