Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, A MONARCH'S DEATHBED, by FELICIA DOROTHEA HEMANS


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A MONARCH'S DEATHBED, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: A monarch on his deathbed lay
Last Line: Imperial albert died!
Alternate Author Name(s): Browne, Felicia Dorothea
Subject(s): Albert I, King Of Germany (1255-1308); Assassination; Kindness; Women


A MONARCH on his deathbed lay --
Did censers waft perfume,
And soft lamps poured their silvery ray,
Through his proud chamber's gloom?
He lay upon a greensward bed,
Beneath a darkening sky --
A lone tree waving o'er his head,
A swift stream rolling by.
Had he then fallen as warriors fall,
Where spear strikes fire with spear?
Was there a banner for his pall,
A buckler for his bier?
Not so -- nor cloven shields nor helms
Had strewn the bloody sod,
Where he, the helpless lord of realms,
Yielded his soul to God.
Were there not friends with words of cheer,
And princely vassals nigh?
And priests, the crucifix to rear
Before the glazing eye?
A peasant girl that royal head
Upon her bosom laid,
And, shrinking not for woman's dread,
The face of death surveyed.
Alone she sat: from hill and wood
Red sank the mournful sun;
Fast gushed the fount of noble blood --
Treason its worst had done.
With her long hair she vainly pressed
The wounds, to stanch their tide --
Unknown, on that meek humble breast,
Imperial Albert died!





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