INTRODUCTION 5
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uty, The Talking Oak, Godiva, and the remarkable poems ofThe Two Voices and The Vision of Sin. The volumes were mostenthusiastically received, and Tennyson took at once his place asEngland’s great poet. A second edition followed in 1848, a thirdin 1845, a fourth in 1846, and a fifth in 1848. Then came ThePrincess: A Medley, 1847; a second edition, 1848; In Memoriam,1850, three editions appearing in the same year. The poet was married June 18, 1850, to Emily, daughter ofHenry Sellwood, Esq., and niece of Sir John Franklin, of ArcticExpedition fame. Wordsworth had died April 28 of that year,and the laureateship was vacant. After some opposition, thechief coming from The Atheneum, which advocated the claims ofElizabeth Barrett Browning, Tennyson received the appointment,his In Memoriam, which had appeared a short time before, andwhich at once laid hold of so many hearts, contributing much, nodoubt, to the final decision. His presentation to the queen tookplace at Buckingham Palace, March 6, 1851, and in the samemonth appeared the seventh edition of the Poems, with an intro-ductory poem To the Queen, in which he pays a high tribute tohis predecessor in the laureateship : * Victoria, since your royal graceTo one of less desert allows
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