GLORY of flowers! pre-eminent o'er all, Thou white-rob'd lily, deck'd with pendant gold, What blest remembrance, as thy leaves unfold, To pure and humble hearts dost thou recall? Discarded emblem! o'er degenerate Gaul Waste we vain sighs? no longer as of old Her regal banner to the winds unroll'd, Weep we vain tears o'er chivalry's downfall? No! thy unsullied leaves nor strife, nor din, Of worldly warfare to the mind suggest; No wreath from thee earth's haughty conquerors win; Still seems Heaven's sainted Handmaid to invest Thy form with beauty, free from stain of sin, The Virgin Mother of all nations blest! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...ON SEEING BLENHEIM CASTLE by LUCY AIKEN OUT OF THE SHADOW by MARGARET FAIRLESS BARBER TEMPORALL SUCCESS by JOSEPH BEAUMONT JUDICIUM PARIDIS by EDWARD ROBERT BULWER-LYTTON OBSERVATIONS IN THE ART OF ENGLISH POESY: 31 by THOMAS CAMPION |