The Shepherd of the Ocean
Preserved but no longer current.
So Sir Walter Raleigh is called by Spenser- — When I asked from what place he came, And how he hight, himselfe he did ycleape The Shepheard of the Ocean by name, And said he came far from the mam-sea deepe. Colin Clout's Come Home Again* 64.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “The Shepherd of the Ocean” mean?
So Sir Walter Raleigh is called by Spenser- — When I asked from what place he came, And how he hight, himselfe he did ycleape The Shepheard of the Ocean by name, And said he came far from the mam-sea deepe. Colin Clout's Come Home Again* 64.
Is “The Shepherd of the Ocean” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.