William B. Yeats

BY Jeffrey Woods

Early years

• William Butler Yeats was born on the 13th of June 1865 in Sandymount , Dublin.

• John Butler Yeats and Susan Mary Pollexfen were William’s parents .

• Soon after William’s birth his family moved to Sligo .

• From 1884 – 1886 he attended the National College of Art and Design .

• His first known works were written when he was 17 .

Maud Gonne

• In 1889 Yeats met Maud Gonne a 23 year old English heiress and Irish Nationalist .

• Yeats was obsessed with her beauty and manner and she had a significant effect on his poetry and life .

• Yeats proposed to Maud on a number of occasions but she refused and instead married Major John MacBride .

• Yeats remained friendly with Maud after she separated from Major MacBride .

Abbey Theatre and Marriage • In 1899 W B Yeats , Lady Gregory and

Edward Martyn founded The Irish National Theatre .

• In 1904 Yeats along with J.M. Synge purchased a property and opened The Abbey Theatre .

• Yeats remained involved with the Abbey until his death .

• In 1916 Yeats aged 51 married Georgie Hyde- Lees and they went on to have two children.

Nobel Prize, Old Age and Death

• In 1923 Yeats was rewarded The Nobel Prize in Literature .

• He died and was buried in France in 1939 , and his body was moved to County Sligo in 1948.

Famous Poems

• Easter 1916 .• Sailing to Byzantium .• A prayer for my daughter .• He wishes for the cloths of Heaven.• When you are old .