Poet laureate and Wordsworth died. Edward Gibbon condemned the position's artificial approach to poetry: The salary has varied, but traditionally includes some alcohol. Ben Jonson first received a pension of 100 marks, and later an annual "terse of Canary wine". Dryden had a pension of £300 and a butt of Canary wine. Pye received £27 instead of the wine. Tennyson drew £72 a year from the Lord Chamberlain's department, and £27 from the Lord Steward's "in lieu of the butt of sack". The current annual salary is £5,750. The present laureate is Carol Ann Duffy, appointed in May 2009. The United Kingdom
Poet Laureate of New Jersey Jews. The previous poet laureate, Gerald Stern, said that he advocated for Baraka's selection because he "thought it was important for the black community to get recognition." "Slate.com" political reporter David Weigel said that McGreevey's selection of Baraka "was a no-brainer—he was a sort of icon, and a major figure within a constituency McGreevey counted on". At a ceremony in August 2002, Baraka warned McGreevey that the decision to appoint him as poet laureate might be a mistake because of his controversial views, saying "You're gonna catch hell for this". After Baraka's death in January 2014, McGreevey said, "I named