William Blake 1757-1827

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Year

Age

Event

1757



Born 28 November Golden Square Central London

1768-72

10-14

Henry Pars' Drawing school, the Strand London

1772-79

14-21

Apprentice engraver for James Basire

1779

21

Student Royal Academy

1780

21

Watched Gordon riots and burning of Newgate Prison

1782

24

Married Catherine Boucher (20 years old)

1783

25

Printed Poetical Sketches

1784

26

Father Died, Set up an unsuccessful print shop

1787

29

Brother Robert Died (20 years old)

1788

30

First works in illuminated printing All Religions Are One and There Is No Natural Religion

1789

31

Engraved Songs of Innocence and Thel, wrote Tiriel

1790-1800

32-42

Moved too 13 Hercules Buildings Lambeth

1791

33

Printed The French Revolution not published

1793

35

The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, Visions of the Daughters of Albion, America, Songs of Experience, The Gates of Paradise, all advertised for sale written and engraved

1794

36

Europe and The Book of Urizen

1795

37

Songs of Los, Book of Ahania, Book of Los

1797

39

Blake illustrated books for Mary Wollstonecraft, Erasmus Darwin, John Stedman. Completed a lot of illusrations for Youngs' Night Thoughts only some published in an incomplete edition, this failure damaged Blakes' career and survived the following years from patronage by Thomas Butts

1800-03

42-45

Worked on projects for William Hayley and on illustrations for Miltons' Comus, on Vala and Milton, he also learned to read Greek, Hebrew and Latin, this was at Felpham on the Sussex coast

1803

45

Moved back to Central London

1804

46

Acquitted at trial for sedation. Title pages of Milton and Jerusalem did not finish poems until 1808 and 1820

1805

47

Made designs for Blairs' The Grave and watercolour illustrations for Grays' Poems

1809

51

Unsuccessful exhibition lived in poverty for next 10 years mainly working on drawings for Milton and Jerusalem

1818

60

Met John Linnell and John Varley from whom he drew his Visionary Heads. Engraved and enlarged The Gates of Paradise, drafted The Everlasting Gospel

1820

62

Created woodcuts for Virgils' Pastorals also engraved The Laocoons, On Homers' Poetry and On Virgil

1821

63

Moved into flat in the Strand London

1822-25

64-67

Illustrations for the Book of Job for Linnell and engraved The Ghost of Abel

1824-27

66-69

Met Samuel Palmer and was inspiration for group of young artists the Ancients. Made 28 watercolour illustrations for Bunyans' Pilgrim's Progress and for Linnell over 100 illustrations to Dantes' Divine Comedy. So he could read Dante Blake learnt Italian

1827

69

William Blake Died on the 12 August.