Byron: A Portrait

by Leslie A. Marchand

It is his clear-sightedness, his candour, his steely strength of will, the immediacy of his writing, his insolence and cynicism, his love of liberty, his hatred of hypocrisy, his originality, his rational enlightened toughness which attached Byron to the present age as much as to his own. Leslie Marchand's profound knowledge of his subject is unrivalled. His superb biography gives us an engrossing and utterly convincing portrait of a genius - a man who more than any other, fulfilled in his brillance, passion and creativity, the ideal of the Romantic Hero. One cannot but be won over by the sensitive, infinitely complex which Leslie Marchand uncovers. . . he gives us the essential Byron. . The spell of this strange, unquiet, blazingly honest and infinitely endearing man, is powerful ' Selina Hastings. Daily Telegraph

Genres: Biography, Romanticism, Nonfiction

553 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1970

About the author

Leslie Alexis Marchand (1900-1999) was a Rutgers professor and a leading authority on Lord Byron. In 1957, he wrote Byron: A Biography and in 1982, published the 12-volume Byron's Letters and Journals.

Reviews

[Hanneke · Rating 5 out of 5]

This biography of Lord Byron is an absolute joy to read. Byron's life reads like an adventure book. And, of course, that's exactly what he was, a reckless adventurer and, undoubtedly, a genuis.

[R · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written after his 3-volume biography of Byron, but before he embarked upon the 12-volume compilation of Byron’s letters and journals, Marchand’s “portrait” is probably the best single book on the great poet. It is the one I will recommend from now on.

Marchand never overshadows his subject, and more often than not, lets him speak for himself with lines from his matchless letters. The only appearance of the biographer comes in the book’s final pages, when, with a researcher’s understandable regret, Marchand laments the burning of Byron’s memoirs that had been entrusted to Thomas More:

“If the manuscript could only have been hidden away or lost sight of for more than a hundred years like the Boswell papers!”

[Allegra Byron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Biografía + Byron + Marchand= 5 estrellas.

[Carol Fischer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite detailed...a great resource. May have been a talented artist, but did he have to have such a messy personal life?? One can stop and consider before acting on an impulse occasionally!!

[Joanne J · Rating 5 out of 5]

While I was familiar with his poetry I didn't know much about Byron's life. Like all creative people he was a complex adventurer who did not live an ordinary life. In his very short lifetime, 36 years, he lived in several different places, Greece being his favorite with Italy coming in second; had many affairs, resulting in only one child we know of, whom he loved dearly but was not involved a whole lot in her life; an unsatisfactory marriage, also resulting in one child, whom he loved but never saw; always managed to write heart-felt poetry no matter what else was going on in his life. I discovered that much of his poetry concerns much of his inner life, the kind of life he wished for himself, as well as meditations on his real life. He always thought a man should leave more behind than something like what he was doing .. his poetry.. which is why he became so involved in the Greek Revolution, fighting and even financially supporting it, so he could leave more behind than "just" his writing. As I said, a complex man. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and think it is a must read for anyone who loves his poetry or poetry in general.

[Keith Miller]

Byron: A Portrait by Leslie A. Marchand (1979)

[Ben Lovegrove · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very useful to read alongside Byron's poetry to understand it in the context of his life

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mentioned in A Shadow in the Garden: A Biographers’ Tale by James Atlas