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Percy Bysshe Shelley publishes Prometheus Unbound.
The Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, who is married to Mary Shelley, publishes Prometheus Unbound, based on Aeschylus' plays about the Greek mythological figure Prometheus. The four-act lyrical drama, which is never meant to be produced onstage, deals with Prometheus' release from captivity. -
John Keats publishes his third volume of poetry.
In July 1820, John Keats, already renowned as a Romantic poet, publishes his third volume of poetry, which is widely considered to be his best work. The poems deal with mythical and legendary themes of ancient, medieval, and Renaissance times, and are rich in imagery and phrasing. The volume includes some of Keats' most famous pieces, including "Ode on a Grecian Urn" and "Ode to a Nightingale." -
Ludwig van Beethoven completes his Ninth Symphony.
German composer Ludwig van Beethoven, seen as bridging the transition between Classical and Romantic music, completes his Ninth Symphony in February 1824. This symphony is seen as Beethoven's masterpiece, and it features intellectual depth and intense, highly personal expression. -
James Fenimore Cooper publishes the first of his Leatherstocking Tales.
American writer James Fenimore Cooper publishes The Prairie, the first of his Leatherstocking Tales concerning the hero Natty Bumppo. The books are inspired in part by the real-life Daniel Boone, and romanticize the already-mythic American frontier. -
Eugène Delacroix completes Liberty Leading the People.
French Romantic artist completes Liberty Leading the People, arguably his most famous painting. The piece commemorates the July 1830 revolution in France that toppled King Charles X, and emphasizes freely brushed color rather than the precise lines of previous schools of art.
