Thomas
Gray
Archive

"Sonnet [on the Death of Mr Richard West]"

    • Archive Work ID: poems.sorw
    • Uniform Title: "Sonnet [on the Death of Mr Richard West]" [e-text]
    • First Line: In vain to me the smiling mornings shine,
    • Language: English
    • First Published: 1775
    • References: Starr/Hendrickson (eds.), Complete Poems (1966), p. 92; Lonsdale (ed.), Poems (1969), pp. 64-68
    • Summary: Composed at Stoke Poges shortly after the death of Richard West, Gray's closest friend, on 1 June 1742. First published, entitled "Sonnet On the Death of Mr. Richard West", in Mason's Poems (1775), p. 60.

    3 Manuscripts:

      • Archive MS ID: mss.0160
      • Title: "Sonnet"
      • Date: August 1742
      • Physical Description: 1 page; autograph fair copy
      • Language: English
      • Location: Commonplace Book, Vol. I, 284, College Library, Pembroke College, Cambridge, Cambridge, UK <http://www.pem.cam.ac.uk/>
      • Alternate Form: Microfilm copy available in Poetic Commonplace Books and Manuscripts of Thomas Gray, 1716-1771, from Pembroke College, Cambridge (1999), reel one, facsimile in Gosse (ed.), Works (1884), vol. iv, frontispiece
      • References: Smith (ed.), Index (1989), item GrT 133, p. 92; Poetic C. B., Pembroke College (1999), p. 25
      • Contents: Autograph fair copy, here entitled "Sonnet" and annotated "at Stoke, Aug: 1742", in Gray's Commonplace Book, vol I, p. 284. It is listed as "West (Richard) Sonnet, on him" in Gray's index to vol II.

      • [MS image]Archive MS ID: mss.0202
      • Title: "Sonnet, On the Death of Richard West Esq."
      • Date: [between 1771 and 1820]
      • Physical Description: 1 page; transcript in an unidentified hand
      • Language: English
      • Location: Ryl. English Ms 656/74, Thrale Piozzi Collection, The John Rylands University Library, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK <http://www.library.manchester.ac.uk/>
      • References: Sutton (ed.), Location Register (1995), p. 415; Young, Anne, "Re: English MS 656/74". Two e-mails to the editor, 16 and 18 August 2006
      • Contents: Transcript in an unidentified hand, probably addressed to Hester Lynch Thrale, in a section of the Thrale Piozzi Collection described as "Poems in various hands, some initialled or signed, other copied... there are 135 items, dated between c. 1735 and 1820." Beneath the sonnet is written "This is the Sonnet I was mentioning to you of Grays which you did not recollect...".
      • Surrogates: Digital facsimile [JPEG] from original MS available online.

      • Archive MS ID: mss.0227
      • Title: "Sonnet on the Death of Mr. Richard West"
      • Date: 1780[?]
      • Physical Description: 4 pages, 180 mm x 110 mm; transcript in an unidentified neat and legible hand on Whatman paper
      • Language: English
      • Location: MS Add. 439, "Poems" section, pp. 105-108, The Archives, York Minster Library & Archives, York, UK <http://www.yorkminster.org/learning/library-archives-collections/archives/>
      • Contents: Transcript in an unidentified neat and legible hand, entitled "Sonnet on the Death of Mr. Richard West" (p. 105) ("Sonnet." [p. 107]). The poem is part of a section called "Poems", which is separately paginated and has its own table of contents (p. 129), in a volume entitled Gray's Poems. The book carries the bookplate of Gray's friend and biographer William Mason.