leading poet of his century.

In 1845, Tennyson, poor still, was granted a pension of 200 pounds,
chiefly through the influence of his friend Richard Monckton Milnes, and
Thomas Carlyle. There was a great deal of criticism regarding this
pension from sources that should have been favorable, but the general
verdict approved the grant. In 1847 appeared _The Princess_, a poem,
which, at that time, did not materially add to his fame; but the poet was
now hailed as one of the great ones of his time, and much was expected of
him.

In 1850 three most important events in the life of Tennyson happened. He
published _In Memoriam_, in memory of his friend, Arthur Henry Hallam; he
was appointed Poet Laureate, in succession to Wordsworth; and he married
Emily Selwood, a lady to whom he had been engaged for seventeen years,
but whom his poverty had prevented him from leading to the altar. From
this time onwards the life of the poet flowed smoothly. He was happily
married, his fame was established, his books brought him sufficient
income on which to live comfortable and well. From this point there is
little to relate in his career, except the publication of his various
volumes.

After his marriage Tennyson lived for some time at Twickenham, where in
1852 Hallam Tennyson was born. In 1851 he and his wife visited Italy, a
visit commemorated in _The Daisy_. In 1853 they removed to Farringford
at Freshwater in the Isle of Wight, a residence subsequently purchased
with the proceeds of _Maud_, published in 1855. The poem had a somewhat
mixed reception, being received in some quarters with unstinted abuse and
in others with the warmest praise. In the year that _Maud_ was published
Tennyson received the honorary degree of D.C.L., from Oxford. In 1859