Moore

Moore

Popularly referred to as Anacreon Moore, Thomas Moore is considered the National Bard of Ireland. He was born on May 28, 1779 in Dublin, Ireland. A poet, singer, songwriter, and entertainer, he is best remembered for his memorable lyrics of "The Minstrel Boy" and "The Last Rose of Summer". Moore wrote over 130 original poems set to folk melodies. He also wrote famous books like Memoirs of the Life of Richard Brinsley Sheridan, The Fudge Family in Paris and The Fudge Family in England. Close friends with writer Lord Byron, Moore was entrusted with the famous romantic's memoirs after his death. Moore burned them, presumably to protect Byron. Many of Moore's poems have been set to music by notable composers like Gaspare Spontini, Robert Schumann, Hector Berlioz, Charles Ives, William Bolcom and Henri Duparc. He died at his home Sloperton Cottage in Bromham, Wiltshire, England on February 26, 1852. He is commemorated in several places: among them a plaque on the house where he was born, a bust in Central Park (New York), and a large bronze statue near Trinity College (Dublin).