Begun late in
1754
and initially abandoned by
August 1755, then taken up again, completed
and revised, between
May and August
1757
. Gray sent the earlier parts of the poem in
letters to
Thomas Wharton
, dated
6 August
1755
(ll. 1-56), and to
Richard Stonhewer
, dated
21
August 1755
(ll. 63-100), the latter part (ll. 111-144) to
William
Mason
, dated
[24
or 31] May 1757
.
First published, as
Ode II.
in Odes by Mr. Gray (1757), 12-21.