Although the name of William Cowper remains unknown to many, he was widely acclaimed as the greatest poet of his era, a literary genius. His verse was read by royalty, and towards the end of his life, he was granted a pension by King George III. Many scholars regard Cowper as having paved the way for the 'romantics': Wordsworth, Tennyson, Byron, Shelley and Keats. He made poetry more accessible to the ordinary person. Above all, Cowper saw himself called to point people to God through the medium of poetry, and in spite of his own tragic mental depression, he was immensely successful in this. William Cowper was undoubtedly the evangelical poet.