Tamerlane

poetry by Poe

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Article History

Tamerlane, dramatic monologue by Edgar Allan Poe, published in Tamerlane and Other Poems (1827) and revised in later editions of the book, which he initially published anonymously at age 18. Like much of Poe’s early verse, “Tamerlane” shows the influence of the Romantic poets, in particular Lord Byron, with its themes of youthful loss, idealistic longing, and universal truths; it also contains an underlying sense of melancholy.

The narrator of the poem is Timur (Tamerlane), the Turkic conqueror who makes his deathbed confession to a friar. He tells of his return to his native village and his dismay upon discovering that his beautiful childhood sweetheart is now dead.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Kathleen Kuiper.