Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson (1809-92), British poet. Known as Alfred, Lord Tennyson, he was Poet Laureate for most of the reign of Queen Victoria, and remains one of Britain's favourite poets. He was born at Somersby in Lincolnshire, son of a clergyman, and was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge. He won the Chancellor's Gold Medal at Cambridge in 1829, and in 1830 published his first collection of poems. He became enormously popular, writing often on clasical mythological themes or commentaries on contemporary events. In 1850, on the death of Wordsworth, he was appointed Poet Laureate, a post he held until his death. He is the ninth most-quoted writer in the Oxford Book of Quotations, having enriched the language with works such as "The Charge of the Light Brigade" and memorable phrases such as "Nature, red in tooth and claw." Tennyson was buried in Westminster Abbey, London.