Dorothy Wellesley, writing in the earlier twentieth century, published a dozen volumes of poetry. She was also an editor of contemporary poetry, a letter-writer, critic, biographer and autobiographer. Her association first with the Hogarth Press and later with W. B. Yeats helped to give her a high profile. Her poetry typically looks back from the modern world, either to ancient history and prehistory, or to her own childhood. She voices a strong feeling for the natural world and a philosophic questioning about origins and principles.