Alcaeus was a lyric poet from the city of Mytilene on the island of Lesbos. He lived and wrote during the late 7th and early 6th centuries BCE, a period of intense political conflict. He was an aristocrat and actively participated in the factional wars against a series of tyrants who ruled his city. This involvement led to his defeat and exile. Ancient sources suggest he was a contemporary, and possibly a lover, of the famous poet Sappho, who was also from Lesbos.

His poetry, written in the Aeolic dialect, was highly personal and often directly reflected his political life. His surviving works are only fragments, quoted by later writers or found on ancient papyri. They fall into two main categories. The first includes political and military poems, which blend drinking songs with calls for conspiracy against his enemies. The second comprises hymns to gods like Apollo and Hermes, where he often linked divine myths to his own struggles. He also wrote on themes of love and mythology.

Alcaeus is a foundational figure in Greek literature. According to modern scholars, his work provides a vivid, first-person window into the turbulent politics of his era. He perfected a metrical form known as the Alcaic stanza, which was later famously adapted by the Roman poet Horace. In antiquity, he was highly respected and included among the canonical Nine Lyric Poets. His fragmentary verses remain crucial for understanding the development of early Greek poetry and political thought.