Isaac Gompertz

Isaac Gompertz (1774 – 25 February 1856) was an English poet. He was known for the poems "The Modern Antique", "Time, or Light and Shade" and "Devon", the latter of which was published under the name J. Gompertz.

Isaac Gompertz
Born	1774 (1774) Middlesex, England
Died	(1856-02-25)25 February 1856 (aged 82) London, England
Resting place	Brompton Cemetery, London
Pen name	J. Gompertz
Occupation	Poet
Years active	1813–1825
Notable works	"The Modern Antique" "Time, or Light and Shade" "Devon"
Spouse	Charlotte Florence Wattier ​ ​ (m. 1818)​
Children	3
Relatives	Benjamin Gompertz (brother) Lewis Gompertz (brother) Gompertz family

Biography

Early life and family

Isaac Gompertz was born into a Jewish family in Middlesex, in 1774.^[1][2] He was one of at least 15 children of Solomon Barent Gompertz, a London diamond merchant, and his second wife, Leah Deborah Cohen.^[1] His brothers included the animal rights activist and inventor Lewis Gompertz and the mathematician and actuary Benjamin Gompertz.^[3] He later composed epitaphs for his brother Barent and for Lewis' wife.^[4][5]

Career

Gompertz was known for his poems "The Modern Antique", "Time, or Light and Shade", and "Devon".^[6] Contemporaries, including Alexander Jamieson,^[7] compared Gompertz to literary figures such as Dryden, Pope, Addison and Gray.^[8] His works garnered positive attention from Leigh Hunt and were well received by the contemporary press.^[9][10] His final work, Devon, a Poem, was published under the name J. Gompertz.^[1]

Personal life and death

On 3 December 1818, Gompertz married Charlotte Florence Wattier at St Mary's Church, Ealing. They had three sons.^[1]

Gompertz died at his home in Ebury Street, London, on 25 February 1856, at the age of 82. He was buried at Brompton Cemetery.^[1]

Publications

• The Modern Antique; Or, The Muse in the Costume of Queen Anne (London: W. Pople, 1813; published anonymously)
• Time, or Light and Shade (London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown, 1815)
• Devon, a Poem (Teignmouth: 1825; published under the name J. Gompertz)