Tennyson by Julia Margaret Cameron, 1865. Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson (August 6, 1809 - October 6, 1892) was Poet Laureate of Great Britain and Ireland during much of Queen Victoria's reign and remains one of the most popular British poets. He excelled at penning short lyrics, such as "Break, Break, Break", "The Charge of the Light Brigade", "Tears, Idle Tears" and "Crossing the Bar". He also wrote some notable blank verse including Idylls of the King, "Ulysses", and "Tithonus". During his career, Tennyson attempted drama, but his plays enjoyed little success. A number of phrases from Tennyson's work have become commonplaces of the English language, including "'Tis better to have loved and lost / Than never to have loved at all", "Theirs not to reason why, / Theirs but to do and die", "To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield", and "Knowledge comes, but Wisdom lingers". He is the ninth most frequently quoted writer in The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations. Tennyson continued writing into his eighties. He died in 1892 at the age of 83. His last words were; "Oh that press will have me now!"