Edward Coote Pinkney was an English-born American poet and editor.
Background
He was born on October 1, 1802 in London, England, United Kingdom, where his father, William Pinkney of Annapolis, Maryland, had been serving since 1796 as one of the commissioners of the United States to adjust claims under the Jay Treaty. Edward was the seventh of ten children.
His mother, Ann Maria (Rodgers) Pinkney, also of Maryland, was a sister of Commodore John Rodgers of the United States Navy. The Pinkneys returned to Maryland in 1804 and lived in Baltimore until 1806, when the father was again sent to England on a diplomatic mission. In 1807 he was named minister to the Court of St. James's and held this post until 1811.
Education
Edward's elementary education was begun in London, and continued in Baltimore at St. Mary's College, which had been established by the Sulpicians in 1803.
Career
In November 1815 he turned for a commission as midshipman in the navy. His active service at sea continued with brief interruptions until the death of his father in 1822. It included duty in the ship of the line Washington, which carried his father on a diplomatic errand to Naples in June 1816, and kept him cruising in the Mediterranean, on board the Washington and other vessels, for nearly three years.
Returning to America in the sloop Peacock, he was assigned to the Constellation, from which he was dismissed in 1821 in consequence of a protest which he and others made against what they thought an unjust penalty imposed by the commodore. After apologies, he was restored to duty, but was later involved in a disagreement with the captain. In the United States schooner Porpoise, he saw active service in the West Indies against pirates and was cited for bravery.
He returned to Baltimore in 1822 and resigned his commission in 1824. Soon after his resignation Pinkney was admitted to the bar, and practised law in Baltimore as a partner of Robert Wilson, Jr. He had already won some repute as a poet, having published with a musical setting in 1823 Look Out Upon the Stars, My Love: A Serenade Written by a Gentleman of Baltimore, and a slender volume entitled Rodolph, a Fragment, which won favorable comment from the North American Review (January 1824).
In 1825, issued a small volume, Poems, which included a new version of "Rodolph, " and about a score of songs and lyrics. "Rodolph, " a Byronic tale of lawless passion, may have influenced Poe's "Al Aaraaf. " In the judgment of Poe and other midcentury critics, Pinkney was entitled to high rank among American lyric poets.
After a journey to Mexico in the vain attempt to secure an appointment in the Mexican navy, from which he returned in ill health, he was chosen by the supporters of John Quincy Adams to be editor of a new paper, The Marylander, created as the organ of their cause. This paper appeared twice weekly from December 5, 1827, and was edited by Pinkney until in 1828 failing health compelled him to retire.
He died, less than twenty-six years old.
Achievements
Edward Coote Pinkney was a popular poet, usually compared in style with the Cavalier poets. He was ranked among the top five poets of the United States at the time. Brief and varied as his career was, his lyrics, particularly "A Health" and "Serenade, " have won him what seems a secure place in American poetry.
