DRUMMOND, William, of Hawthornden, Scottish poet: b. Hawthornden House, near Edinburgh, 13 Dec. 1585; d. there, 4 Dec. 1649. He was graduated at the University of Edin burgh in 1605, afterward studying at London, Bourges and Paris. He retired to Hawthornden, sweet and solitary seat, and very fit and proper for the and gave himself up to the cultivation of poetry and polite literature. A dangerous illness fostered a serious and devout turn of mind, which was evinced by his first productions, Cypress Grove,) in prose, containing reflections upon death ; and 'Flowers of Sion, or Spiritual He was a friend of Drayton and of Montrose, and entertained Ben Jonson at Hawthornden for three weeks on the occasion of a visit which the English dramatist made to Scotland in the winter of 1618-19. To this visit a great deal of interest is attached from the fact that Drummond took notes of the conversations held with Ben Jon son, which were afterward published, though not till long after the death of both. They first
appeared in the folio edition of Drummond's works in 1711. These notes were republished separately by the Shakespeare Society in 1842.
As a historian, Druipm.ond is chleftir tetnarktible for an ornate style, and a strong attachment to the High Church principles of the Jacobites. His 'History of the Reigns of the Five Jameses) was published several years after his death. An ardent Royalist, he was forced to sign the Covenant, and it is said that the news of the execution of Charles I hastened his death. He is now remembered only as a poet. Although tinged with the conceits of the Italian school, there is much genuine imagery and truth of feeling in all his poetry, but particularly in his sonnets, which are replete with tenderness and delicacy. He wrote in English, and not in his native Scots. See his 'Poems,' edited with memoir, by Ward (1894) ; 'Life,' by Masson (1873).