History

The memorial stone to George, 6th Baron Byron in Poets' Corner Westminster Abbey was given by the Poetry Society and unveiled on 8 May 1969. It adjoins the memorials to Dylan Thomas, Lewis Carroll and D.H.Lawrence. The white marble stone is inlaid with gold Sienna marble lettering and reads:

"LORD BYRON Died 19 April 1824 aged 36 at Missolonghi, Greece.

But there is that within me which shall tire

Torture and Time, and breathe when I expire"

His best known poems are probably Childe Harold and Don Juan. After the success of the former work he recalled "I awoke one morning and found myself famous". When his marriage failed in 1816 he lived abroad. In 1823 he joined the Greek insurgents but died of fever. He is buried in his family vault at Hucknall Torkard in Nottinghamshire. For many years the open profligacy of his life prevented his commemoration in the Abbey.

A photo of the memorial can be purchased from Westminster Abbey Library.