Poem: Ravenna
Poem: Ravenna
上海龙凤shlf最新地址(Newdigate prize poem recited in the Sheldonian Theatre Oxford June
上海龙凤shlf最新地址26th, 1878.
To my friend George Fleming author of 'The Nile Novel' and
'Mirage')
I.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址A year ago I breathed the Italian air, -
And yet, methinks this northern Spring is fair,-
上海龙凤shlf最新地址These fields made golden with the flower of March,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址The throstle singing on the feathered larch,
The cawing rooks, the wood-doves fluttering by,
The little clouds that race across the sky;
And fair the violet's gentle drooping head,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址The primrose, pale for love uncomforted,
The rose that burgeons on the climbing briar,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址The crocus-bed, (that seems a moon of fire
Round-girdled with a purple marriage-ring);
And all the flowers of our English Spring,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Fond snowdrops, and the bright-starred daffodil.
Up starts the lark beside the murmuring mill,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And breaks the gossamer-threads of early dew;
And down the river, like a flame of blue,
Keen as an arrow flies the water-king,
While the brown linnets in the greenwood sing.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址A year ago! - it seems a little time
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Since last I saw that lordly southern clime,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Where flower and fruit to purple radiance blow,
And like bright lamps the fabled apples glow.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Full Spring it was - and by rich flowering vines,
Dark olive-groves and noble forest-pines,
I rode at will; the moist glad air was sweet,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址The white road rang beneath my horse's feet,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And musing on Ravenna's ancient name,
I watched the day till, marked with wounds of flame,
The turquoise sky to burnished gold was turned.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址O how my heart with boyish passion burned,
When far away across the sedge and mere
I saw that Holy City rising clear,
Crowned with her crown of towers! - On and on
上海龙凤shlf最新地址I galloped, racing with the setting sun,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And ere the crimson after-glow was passed,
I stood within Ravenna's walls at last!
II.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址How strangely still! no sound of life or joy
Startles the air; no laughing shepherd-boy
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Pipes on his reed, nor ever through the day
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Comes the glad sound of children at their play:
O sad, and sweet, and silent! surely here
上海龙凤shlf最新地址A man might dwell apart from troublous fear,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Watching the tide of seasons as they flow
From amorous Spring to Winter's rain and snow,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And have no thought of sorrow; - here, indeed,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Are Lethe's waters, and that fatal weed
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Which makes a man forget his fatherland.
Ay! amid lotus-meadows dost thou stand,
Like Proserpine, with poppy-laden head,
Guarding the holy ashes of the dead.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址For though thy brood of warrior sons hath ceased,
Thy noble dead are with thee! - they at least
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Are faithful to thine honour:- guard them well,
O childless city! for a mighty spell,
To wake men's hearts to dreams of things sublime,
Are the lone tombs where rest the Great of Time.
III.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Yon lonely pillar, rising on the plain,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Marks where the bravest knight of France was slain, -
The Prince of chivalry, the Lord of war,
Gaston de Foix: for some untimely star
Led him against thy city, and he fell,
As falls some forest-lion fighting well.
Taken from life while life and love were new,
He lies beneath God's seamless veil of blue;
Tall lance-like reeds wave sadly o'er his head,
And oleanders bloom to deeper red,
Where his bright youth flowed crimson on the ground.
Look farther north unto that broken mound, -
There, prisoned now within a lordly tomb
Raised by a daughter's hand, in lonely gloom,
Huge-limbed Theodoric, the Gothic king,
Sleeps after all his weary conquering.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Time hath not spared his ruin, - wind and rain
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Have broken down his stronghold; and again
上海龙凤shlf最新地址We see that Death is mighty lord of all,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And king and clown to ashen dust must fall
Mighty indeed THEIR glory! yet to me
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Barbaric king, or knight of chivalry,
Or the great queen herself, were poor and vain,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Beside the grave where Dante rests from pain.
His gilded shrine lies open to the air;
And cunning sculptor's hands have carven there
上海龙凤shlf最新地址The calm white brow, as calm as earliest morn,
The eyes that flashed with passionate love and scorn,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址The lips that sang of Heaven and of Hell,
The almond-face which Giotto drew so well,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址The weary face of Dante; - to this day,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Here in his place of resting, far away
From Arno's yellow waters, rushing down
Through the wide bridges of that fairy town,
Where the tall tower of Giotto seems to rise
A marble lily under sapphire skies!
Alas! my Dante! thou hast known the pain
Of meaner lives, - the exile's galling chain,
How steep the stairs within kings' houses are,
And all the petty miseries which mar
Man's nobler nature with the sense of wrong.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Yet this dull world is grateful for thy song;
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Our nations do thee homage, - even she,
That cruel queen of vine-clad Tuscany,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Who bound with crown of thorns thy living brow,
Hath decked thine empty tomb with laurels now,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And begs in vain the ashes of her son.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址O mightiest exile! all thy grief is done:
Thy soul walks now beside thy Beatrice;
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Ravenna guards thine ashes: sleep in peace.
IV.
How lone this palace is; how grey the walls!
No minstrel now wakes echoes in these halls.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址The broken chain lies rusting on the door,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And noisome weeds have split the marble floor:
Here lurks the snake, and here the lizards run
上海龙凤shlf最新地址By the stone lions blinking in the sun.
Byron dwelt here in love and revelry
上海龙凤shlf最新地址For two long years - a second Anthony,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Who of the world another Actium made!
Yet suffered not his royal soul to fade,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Or lyre to break, or lance to grow less keen,
'Neath any wiles of an Egyptian queen.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址For from the East there came a mighty cry,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And Greece stood up to fight for Liberty,
And called him from Ravenna: never knight
Rode forth more nobly to wild scenes of fight!
None fell more bravely on ensanguined field,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Borne like a Spartan back upon his shield!
O Hellas! Hellas! in thine hour of pride,
Thy day of might, remember him who died
To wrest from off thy limbs the trammelling chain:
上海龙凤shlf最新地址O Salamis! O lone Plataean plain!
O tossing waves of wild Euboean sea!
上海龙凤shlf最新地址O wind-swept heights of lone Thermopylae!
上海龙凤shlf最新地址He loved you well - ay, not alone in word,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Who freely gave to thee his lyre and sword,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Like AEschylos at well-fought Marathon:
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And England, too, shall glory in her son,
Her warrior-poet, first in song and fight.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址No longer now shall Slander's venomed spite
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Crawl like a snake across his perfect name,
Or mar the lordly scutcheon of his fame.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址For as the olive-garland of the race,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Which lights with joy each eager runner's face,
As the red cross which saveth men in war,
As a flame-bearded beacon seen from far
上海龙凤shlf最新地址By mariners upon a storm-tossed sea, -
Such was his love for Greece and Liberty!
Byron, thy crowns are ever fresh and green:
Red leaves of rose from Sapphic Mitylene
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Shall bind thy brows; the myrtle blooms for thee,
In hidden glades by lonely Castaly;
The laurels wait thy coming: all are thine,
And round thy head one perfect wreath will twine.
V.
The pine-tops rocked before the evening breeze
上海龙凤shlf最新地址With the hoarse murmur of the wintry seas,
And the tall stems were streaked with amber bright; -
上海龙凤shlf最新地址I wandered through the wood in wild delight,
Some startled bird, with fluttering wings and fleet,
Made snow of all the blossoms; at my feet,
Like silver crowns, the pale narcissi lay,
And small birds sang on every twining spray.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址O waving trees, O forest liberty!
Within your haunts at least a man is free,
And half forgets the weary world of strife:
The blood flows hotter, and a sense of life
Wakes i' the quickening veins, while once again
The woods are filled with gods we fancied slain.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Long time I watched, and surely hoped to see
Some goat-foot Pan make merry minstrelsy
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Amid the reeds! some startled Dryad-maid
In girlish flight! or lurking in the glade,
The soft brown limbs, the wanton treacherous face
Of woodland god! Queen Dian in the chase,
White-limbed and terrible, with look of pride,
And leash of boar-hounds leaping at her side!
Or Hylas mirrored in the perfect stream.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址O idle heart! O fond Hellenic dream!
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Ere long, with melancholy rise and swell,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址The evening chimes, the convent's vesper bell,
Struck on mine ears amid the amorous flowers.
Alas! alas! these sweet and honied hours
Had whelmed my heart like some encroaching sea,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And drowned all thoughts of black Gethsemane.
VI.
O lone Ravenna! many a tale is told
Of thy great glories in the days of old:
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Two thousand years have passed since thou didst see
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Caesar ride forth to royal victory.
Mighty thy name when Rome's lean eagles flew
From Britain's isles to far Euphrates blue;
And of the peoples thou wast noble queen,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Till in thy streets the Goth and Hun were seen.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Discrowned by man, deserted by the sea,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Thou sleepest, rocked in lonely misery!
上海龙凤shlf最新地址No longer now upon thy swelling tide,
Pine-forest-like, thy myriad galleys ride!
上海龙凤shlf最新地址For where the brass-beaked ships were wont to float,
The weary shepherd pipes his mournful note;
And the white sheep are free to come and go
Where Adria's purple waters used to flow.
O fair! O sad! O Queen uncomforted!
In ruined loveliness thou liest dead,
Alone of all thy sisters; for at last
Italia's royal warrior hath passed
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Rome's lordliest entrance, and hath worn his crown
In the high temples of the Eternal Town!
上海龙凤shlf最新地址The Palatine hath welcomed back her king,
And with his name the seven mountains ring!
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And Naples hath outlived her dream of pain,
And mocks her tyrant! Venice lives again,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址New risen from the waters! and the cry
Of Light and Truth, of Love and Liberty,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Is heard in lordly Genoa, and where
The marble spires of Milan wound the air,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Rings from the Alps to the Sicilian shore,
And Dante's dream is now a dream no more.
But thou, Ravenna, better loved than all,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Thy ruined palaces are but a pall
That hides thy fallen greatness! and thy name
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Burns like a grey and flickering candle-flame
Beneath the noonday splendour of the sun
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Of new Italia! for the night is done,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址The night of dark oppression, and the day
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Hath dawned in passionate splendour: far away
The Austrian hounds are hunted from the land,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Beyond those ice-crowned citadels which stand
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Girdling the plain of royal Lombardy,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址From the far West unto the Eastern sea.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址I know, indeed, that sons of thine have died
In Lissa's waters, by the mountain-side
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Of Aspromonte, on Novara's plain, -
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Nor have thy children died for thee in vain:
And yet, methinks, thou hast not drunk this wine
From grapes new-crushed of Liberty divine,
Thou hast not followed that immortal Star
Which leads the people forth to deeds of war.
Weary of life, thou liest in silent sleep,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址As one who marks the lengthening shadows creep,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Careless of all the hurrying hours that run,
Mourning some day of glory, for the sun
Of Freedom hath not shewn to thee his face,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And thou hast caught no flambeau in the race.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Yet wake not from thy slumbers, - rest thee well,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Amidst thy fields of amber asphodel,
Thy lily-sprinkled meadows, - rest thee there,
To mock all human greatness: who would dare
上海龙凤shlf最新地址To vent the paltry sorrows of his life
Before thy ruins, or to praise the strife
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Of kings' ambition, and the barren pride
Of warring nations! wert not thou the Bride
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Of the wild Lord of Adria's stormy sea!
The Queen of double Empires! and to thee
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Were not the nations given as thy prey!
And now - thy gates lie open night and day,
The grass grows green on every tower and hall,
The ghastly fig hath cleft thy bastioned wall;
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And where thy mailed warriors stood at rest
上海龙凤shlf最新地址The midnight owl hath made her secret nest.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址O fallen! fallen! from thy high estate,
O city trammelled in the toils of Fate,
Doth nought remain of all thy glorious days,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址But a dull shield, a crown of withered bays!
Yet who beneath this night of wars and fears,
From tranquil tower can watch the coming years;
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Who can foretell what joys the day shall bring,
Or why before the dawn the linnets sing?
Thou, even thou, mayst wake, as wakes the rose
To crimson splendour from its grave of snows;
上海龙凤shlf最新地址As the rich corn-fields rise to red and gold
From these brown lands, now stiff with Winter's cold;
As from the storm-rack comes a perfect star!
上海龙凤shlf最新地址O much-loved city! I have wandered far
From the wave-circled islands of my home;
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Have seen the gloomy mystery of the Dome
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Rise slowly from the drear Campagna's way,
Clothed in the royal purple of the day:
I from the city of the violet crown
Have watched the sun by Corinth's hill go down,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And marked the 'myriad laughter' of the sea
From starlit hills of flower-starred Arcady;
Yet back to thee returns my perfect love,
As to its forest-nest the evening dove.
O poet's city! one who scarce has seen
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Some twenty summers cast their doublets green
For Autumn's livery, would seek in vain
To wake his lyre to sing a louder strain,
Or tell thy days of glory; - poor indeed
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Is the low murmur of the shepherd's reed,
Where the loud clarion's blast should shake the sky,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And flame across the heavens! and to try
Such lofty themes were folly: yet I know
That never felt my heart a nobler glow
Than when I woke the silence of thy street
With clamorous trampling of my horse's feet,
And saw the city which now I try to sing,
After long days of weary travelling.
VII.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Adieu, Ravenna! but a year ago,
I stood and watched the crimson sunset glow
From the lone chapel on thy marshy plain:
The sky was as a shield that caught the stain
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Of blood and battle from the dying sun,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And in the west the circling clouds had spun
上海龙凤shlf最新地址A royal robe, which some great God might wear,
While into ocean-seas of purple air
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Sank the gold galley of the Lord of Light.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Yet here the gentle stillness of the night
Brings back the swelling tide of memory,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And wakes again my passionate love for thee:
Now is the Spring of Love, yet soon will come
On meadow and tree the Summer's lordly bloom;
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And soon the grass with brighter flowers will blow,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And send up lilies for some boy to mow.
Then before long the Summer's conqueror,
Rich Autumn-time, the season's usurer,
Will lend his hoarded gold to all the trees,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And see it scattered by the spendthrift breeze;
And after that the Winter cold and drear.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址So runs the perfect cycle of the year.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And so from youth to manhood do we go,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And fall to weary days and locks of snow.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Love only knows no winter; never dies:
Nor cares for frowning storms or leaden skies
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And mine for thee shall never pass away,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Though my weak lips may falter in my lay.
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Adieu! Adieu! yon silent evening star,
The night's ambassador, doth gleam afar,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址And bid the shepherd bring his flocks to fold.
Perchance before our inland seas of gold
Are garnered by the reapers into sheaves,
Perchance before I see the Autumn leaves,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址I may behold thy city; and lay down
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Low at thy feet the poet's laurel crown.
Adieu! Adieu! yon silver lamp, the moon,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Which turns our midnight into perfect noon,
上海龙凤shlf最新地址Doth surely light thy towers, guarding well
Where Dante sleeps, where Byron loved to dwell.