Feature Article on Sir Philip Sidney. Topic: PEOPLE
Written by David Lodge in July,
1997
SIR PHILIP SIDNEY, A RENAISSANCE MAN...Pg 4 |
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| Satisfied that Oxford had given all it could,
he later sped with much haste to Cambridge University to absorb all it had to offer. I
followed his tracks with much trepidation because even though I possessed a commendable
willingness to learn, in the long shadow of Sidney’s person, my successes appeared
insignificant. Such is the fate of those who choose to walk beside lifetime partners whose
stride forever increases. In 1572, Philip crossed the English Channel on his first of many ventures abroad. His distinguished companions included the highest of English noblemen and me. In each and every country of Europe he visited, he generated the most gratuitous affection. A reciprocated affection that kept us from England’s shores until 1575. It was during his foray into Italy that the most contentious amongst his admirers insisted vehemently that Philip met the great Tasso, Italy’s equivalent to William Shakespeare. I know nothing of such a relationship and cannot verify or dispute its validity, although, as a writer, Philip, knowing his close proximity to the Italian bard, would have surely sought his counsel. As the English Ambassador to Vienna in 1576, he was instrumental in convening and forging an alliance between the states of Europe who opposed Rome and the particularly cruel, (in the name of religion), country of Spain. On his return to England, he and I were immensely surprised at the public outpouring of affection and admiration for his accomplishments as a diplomat. The laurels placed upon this statesman, adventurer, author, poet, playwright, by an adoring public were unsurpassed in England’s history, and are embroiled and proclaimed in Queen Elizabeth’s continual reference to him as, "her Philip." |
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