T.S. Eliot considered George Herbert one of the liveliest and most profound of English poets with whose work he felt an instinctive accord. Describing The Temple as … ‘not simply a collection of poems but … a record of the spiritual struggles of a man of intellectual power and emotional intensity who gave much toil to perfecting his verses …’ T.S. Eliot considered Herbert’s religious verse above John Donne’s and placed him firmly in the ranks of the great English poets. Peter Porter’s new introduction gives a fresh perspective on the poetry of Herbert and on Eliot’s study itself.

Revised by: Peter Porter
Introduction by: Peter Porter