Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom and October 1892, there was a break of four years as a mark of respect; Tennyson's laureate poems "Ode on the Death of the Duke of Wellington" and "The Charge of the Light Brigade" were particularly cherished by the Victorian public. Five poets, Thomas Gray, Samuel Rogers, Walter Scott, Philip Larkin and Seamus Heaney, turned down the laureateship. The holder of the position as of 2018 is Carol Ann Duffy, who was appointed in May 2009 on a fixed ten-year term. The origins of the poet laureateship date back to 1616 when James I of England granted a pension to
Poet Laureate of New Jersey him poet laureate because I appreciated his art, his intelligence and his creative energy. I’ve always had great personal affect(ion) for him and recognized him as a gifted creative force." On September 20, 2002, Baraka incited a public controversy with a public reading of his poem "Somebody Blew Up America" in front of 2,000 people at the September 2002 Geraldine R. Dodge Poetry Festival held in Stanhope, New Jersey. He was briefly booed by the audience. This poem, written in October 2001, was read at the festival—held one year after the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center—and was