Biography

William Cowper was one of the most famous English poets of his day. His mother died when he was a child, after which he was sent to a local boarding school. He then studied law at Westminster School, and was called to the bar in 1754.  Throughout his life he battled mental illness. After trying to commit suicide he was institutionalized for a year and a half. He wrote many poems and ballads, including "The Task," "John Gilpin," and "Olney Hymns," the last of which he wrote in collaboration with John Newton.