ROME, Rome! thou art no more As thou hast been! On thy seven hills of yore Thou satst a queen. Thou hadst thy triumphs then Purpling the street, Leaders and sceptred men Bowed at thy feet. They that thy mantle wore, As gods were seen -- Rome, Rome! thou art no more As thou hast been! Rome! thine imperial brow Never shall rise: What hast thou left thee now? -- Thou hast thy skies! Blue, deeply blue, they are, Gloriously bright! Veiling thy wastes afar With colored light. Thou hast the sunset's glow, Rome! for thy dower, Flushing tall cypress-bough, Temple and tower! And all sweet sounds are thine, Lovely to hear, While night, o'er tomb and shrine Rests darkly clear. Many a solemn hymn, By starlight sung, Sweeps through the arches dim, Thy wrecks among. Many a flute's low swell, On thy soft air Lingers and loves to dwell With summer there. Thou hast the south's rich gift Of sudden song -- A charming fountain, swift, Joyous and strong. Thou hast fair forms that move With queenly tread; Thou hast proud fanes above Thy mighty dead. Yet wears thy Tiber's shore A mournful mien: -- Rome, Rome! thou art no more As thou hast been! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...MY LADY'S PLEASURE by ROBERT GRAHAM A DREAM, AFTER READING DANTE'S EPISODE OF PAULO & FRANCESCA by JOHN KEATS THE WITCH IN THE GLASS by SARAH MORGAN BRYAN PIATT OF A CONTENTED MIND [OR, SPIRIT] by THOMAS VAUX A RENOUNCING OF LOVE by THOMAS WYATT |