To the Right Honourable William, Earl of Dartmouth

What it is

This poem was written by Phillis Wheatley in 1772, addressed to William Legge, Earl of Dartmouth, a British official responsible for colonial affairs.

Wheatley celebrates his appointment and the hopes for freedom in the colonies, then shifts to speak of her own seizure from Africa.

Why it matters

This poem contains one of the clearest moments in Wheatley's work where she connects the colonial cry for liberty to her own personal history as an enslaved person. It shows how an enslaved African-American poet used the language of politics to speak about her own experience.

Look closer

• Why might Wheatley choose to praise a British official while also speaking of her own enslavement?
• What does it tell us that an enslaved poet addressed a high-ranking official directly?
• What questions does the poem leave open about how Wheatley really felt about slavery?