William Butler Yeats

WB Yeats

William Butler Yeats was born in Ireland in 1865. His father and brother were famous painters, but Yeats chose to concentrate on literature, composing poetry, editing the poems of others (including William Blake) and writing plays.

He was fascinated by the history and culture of Ireland, particularly its folklore, and went on to become involved in Irish politics - he was a nationalist and wanted Ireland to be self-governing.

This poem was written in 1899, so is one of his earlier poems. It reflects his interest in the Irish peasantry.