A Metrical History of England :: :: University of Virginia Library

A Metrical History of England

Or, Recollections, in Rhyme, Of some of the most prominent Features in our National Chronology, from the Landing of Julius Caesar to the Commencement of the Regency, in 1812. In Two Volumes ... By Thomas Dibdin

Dibdin, Thomas (1771-1841)

KINGDOM OF NORTHUMBERLAND.

THE KINGDOM OF EAST-ANGLIA.

THE KINGDOM OF MERCIA.

THE KINGDOM OF ESSEX,

THE KINGDOM OF SUSSEX,

THE KINGDOM OF WESSEX,

II.

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THE ANCIENT BRITONS.

When Britons “first at Heaven's command,
Arose,” by chronicles we're told,
They wore no cov'ring, thro' the land,
But Paint to guard their bodies from the cold.

The Celtic beaux, of frame robust,
With Celtic belles, almost as stout,
Thro' wind, and rain, and sun, and dust,
Thus only, kept the weather out:

'Till men grew sick of paint, and cou'dn't bear it,
Some of the ladies (I believe) still wear it:

Not that the ancient warriors of our Isle
Wou'd fly their colours;—no—the sturdy elves,
(Spite of the critic's pun-detecting smile)
Beheld their colours fly, and not themselves.

Folks who were rich were painted mortal fine,
With fish, and fowl, and suns, and moons, and beasts;
And those best painted oftenest ask to dine,
And burn fat prisoners at Druid-feasts.

Those who were poor, or very much in debt,
For oil and turpentine, Historians say,
Were merely white washed, 'tis a custom yet,
Much in observance at this very day.

Then too, as now, ladies, when least attired,
For what they did not wear, were most admired.

“Yet ev'n these charms from insult to protect,
“Some club-arm'd Warrior stood, terrific, nigh,
“With uncouth forms, and shapeless monsters deck'd,
“Who thus implored his mistress, with a sigh:

(Observe, that, when these rough-hewn rhymes they sung,
The ancient Britons were but very young.)

“More honoured in the breach.” Shakespeare.

Vide Gray's Elegy in a Country Church Yard.

CŒDWALLA to EDDA.

An Ancient British Love-Song.

I.

By those raven-dyed ringlets that float round thy form,
And circle that heaven thy beauties display;
By that face, like the sun-beam that peeps thro' the storm,
Our hopes to encourage, our fears to allay;
By that dove, dearest Edda, pourtrayed on thy breast;—
With one smile of assent let Cœdwalla be blest!
Druid Chiefs my suit befriend,
While the misletoe I twine,
Let the sacred flame ascend,
Say, shall Edda's charms be mine?

II.

By the speed of my coursers in hunting and war,
Whose trembling impatience for action I prize;
By the scythes on my chariot, less dangerous far,
Than the shafts dearest Edda can dart from her eyes,

By the groans of the wounded, the shades of the slain,
I beseech thee, dear Edda, to shorten my pain!
Holy Druid Chiefs, befriend,
While the misletoe I twine,
See the sacred flame ascend,
Edda must, and shall, be mine.

EDDA to CŒDWALLA.

Being the Answer of an Ancient British Damsel in her Teens.

I.

Chief of thy daring tribe, with pride I see
Those looks, of late so dreadful to the foe,
Soften to kindness, when they bend on me,
As melts, in cheering Spring, the mountain's snow.

II.

Yes, seek the altars of our warlike sires,
With rev'rence bend before each hallowed shrine,
Pure be thy passion, as their sacred fires,
And, Heaven approving, Edda shall be thine.

These were their sentiments, or may have been,
'Ere Britons found the way to Gretna Green;
But these, however homely, were the strains
Of lovers of haut ton, and form'd with pains.
When meaner folks by Cupid were perplexed,
Haply a ditty, simple as the next,
Might have been carol'd to a lady's maid,
By some bold serjeant, corporal, or the like,
Should it want force your faculties to strike,
Remember War, not Writing, was his trade.

COURTSHIP of the CANAILLE.

I

My love's so like a fine field day,
No colour does she lack;
But varied, as the rainbow gay,
She's straiter in the back.

II

Her nose is red, her lips are blue,
Her chin as green as grass;
And what of saffron colour'd hue,
Can Ila's neck surpass?

III

My heart how soft it's grown to prove,
Next prisoner I take,
I'll shut him in an image, love,
And burn him for thy sake.

IV

Or shou'd we e'er be put to flight,
And savage foes give chace,
I'll pierce thy bosom with delight,
To save thee from disgrace.

The MAIDEN's REPLY.

I

My love, of pilfering Danes the dread,
What warrior may abide?
A lion's painted on his head,
A dragon decks his side.

II

A wolf grins lovely on his chest,
A serpent twines his arms,
And captives' hides which form his vest
Add softness to his charms.

III

When forth he strides with martial glee,
No peasant dares to laugh;
He wears a bull upon each knee,
A cow on either calf.

IV

I know a little Druid's cell,
I know the Druid too,
And, if we ask him, who can tell,
What gold for us may do?

V

They say true lovers oft he weds,
And with a sacred bough
Sprinkles cold water on their heads,
To warm the mutual vow.

Such were our ancestors, or such I've sung 'em,
Till Veni, Vidi, Vici, came among 'em.
No Nelson on the well-defended main
Was there, to beat the Roman back again;

No Abercrombie—but—the countless names
Of heroes, who'd have wrapt their fleet in flames,
O'erpower the Muse: Ah! had the least of those
Been placed between Britannia and her foes;
Cæsar had prov'd a baffled, beaten, fool,
Had fled with foul dishonour from our shore;
Nor had I, and some thousand dunces more,
Been, through his Commentaries, whipt at school.

England, including Wales, was. at the invasion of the Romans, divided into the following seventeen states:

CALLED BY THE ROMANS, 1 The Danmonii; now, the counties of Cornwall and Devon. 2 Durotriges; Dorsetshire. 3 Belgæ; Somerset, Wilts, part of Hants. 4 Attrebatii; Berks. 5 Regni; Surrey, Sussex, and remaining part of Hants. 6 Cantii; Kent. 7 Dobuni; Gloucester and Oxon. 8 Cattieuchlani; Bucks, Bedford, and Herts. 9 Trinobantes; Essex, and Middlesex. 10 Iceni; Suffolk, Norfolk, Huntingdon, and Cambridge. 11 Coritani; Northampton, Leicester, Rutland, Lincoln, Nottingham. and Derby. 12 Cornavi; Warwick, Worcester, Stafford, Chester, and Shropshire. 13 The Silures; Radnor, Brecon, Glamorgan, Monmouth, and Hereford. 14 Demetœ; Pembroke, Cardigan, Caermarthen. 15 Ordovices; Montgomery, Merioneth, Caernarvon, Flint, and Denbigh. 16 The Brigantes; York, Durham, Lancashire, Westmoreland, and Cumberland. 17 Ottadini; Northumberland to the Tweed.