Irish Poet John Montague Dies at 87

Over the weekended we were saddened by the news of the death of poet John Montague at the age of 87. As the Independent reports, Montague was a much-loved, prolific, and award-winning writer who taught in Ireland, France, and the U.S. From the top:

John Montague passed away in Nice in the south of France on Saturday morning.

Just this November, the poet was presented with the Bob Hughes Lifetime Achievement Award at the Bord Gais Energy Irish Book Awards. He was made Ireland's first Professor of Poetry in 1998.

He taught at University of California, Berkeley, UCD, University College Cork and the Sorbonne and served as distinguished Writer-in-Residence at the New York State Writers Institute.

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Sheila Pratschke, chair of the Arts Council said: "A true giant of Irish letters, John Montague possessed a voice and vision which was wholly unique and deeply needed, at once intensely relevant and local, while also embracing and celebrating the cosmopolitan.

"His loss will be felt acutely but his work will continue to inspire both readers and writers for generations to come."

Montague was a frequent contributor to the pages of Poetry over his career (of both poetry and prose), going back to 1959 with his first poetry appearance in the September 1959 issue with his poem "Speech for an Ideal Irish Election." Throughout the 1950s, Montague contributed a series of reviews from an array of work in English and in translation, while his poetry continued to appear over the decades. Head here now to read up on his work and celebrate his life.