The Highwayman (poem)

"The Highwayman" is a romantic ballad and narrative poem written by Alfred Noyes, first published in the August 1906 issue[1] of Blackwood's Magazine, based in Edinburgh, Scotland.

The poem, set in 18th-century rural England, tells the story of an unnamed highwayman who is in love with Bess, a landlord's daughter.

Betrayed to the authorities by Tim, a jealous ostler, the highwayman escapes ambush when Bess sacrifices her life to warn him.

The poem was written on the edge of a desolate stretch of land known as Bagshot Heath in Surrey, where Noyes, then aged 24, had taken rooms in a cottage.

Almost half a century later, Noyes wrote, "I think the success of the poem... was because it was not an artificial composition, but was written at an age when I was genuinely excited by that kind of romantic story.