Robert Southey

Robert Southey (/ˈsaʊði/ or /ˈsʌði/; August 12, 1774 in Bristol – March 21, 1843 in London) was an English poet of the Romantic school, one of the so-called "Lake Poets", and Poet Laureate for 30 years from 1813 to his death in 1843. Although his fame has long been eclipsed by that of his contemporaries and friends William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Southey's verse still enjoys some popularity.

Southey was also a prolific letter writer, literary scholar, essay writer, historian and biographer. His biographies include the life and works of John Bunyan, John Wesley, William Cowper, Oliver Cromwell and Horatio Nelson. The last has rarely been out of print since its publication in 1813 and was adapted for the screen in the 1926 British film, Nelson. He was also a renowned scholar of Portuguese and Spanish literature and history, translating a number of works from those two languages into English and writing a History of Brazil (part of his planned History of Portugal, which he never completed) and a History of the Peninsular War. Perhaps his most enduring contribution to literary history is the children's classic The Story of the Three Bears, the original Goldilocks story, first published in Southey's prose collection The Doctor.

Robert Southey (businessman)

Sir Robert John "Bob" Southey AO, CMG (20 March 1922 – 29 September 1998) was an Australian businessman, who was president of the Liberal Party of Australia from 1970 to 1975, and chairman of The Australian Ballet Foundation from 1980 to 1990.

Early life, education and military service

Southey was born in Melbourne in 1922, the son of Allen Hope Southey and his wife, Ethel Thorpe (Nancy) McComas. He was schooled at Geelong Grammar School, at which he was dux of his final year. At the completion of his schooling, he moved to England to study classics at Magdalen College, Oxford. When World War II broke out, Southey enlisted in the British Army, and following completion of training at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst he was commissioned in the 2nd Battalion of the Coldstream Guards. He saw service in North Africa and Italy, attaining the rank of Captain.

After the war, Southey returned to Oxford, graduating in 1948 with first-class honours and a Master of Arts. He also rowed for Oxford and was elected to the Leander Club.