King Arthur An Heroick Poem. In Twelve Books. By Richard Blackmore. To which is Annexed, An Index, Explaining the Names of Countrys, Citys, and Rivers, &c |
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 | King Arthur |  |
The tender Offspring of the Womb shall dy,
And dash'd to pieces on the Pavement ly.
Th'Inexorable Sword around shall rage
Without distruction made of Sex or Age.
The fierce Destroyer shall thy Nobles meet,
And lay thy Youth in heaps in every street.
Children shall trembling to their Father sly,
And at his feet shall by the Javelin dy.
Scar'd Infants cling about the Mothers neck,
And on the Invader look with Horror back,
But stab'd within her Arms they fill with blood
The Parent's Bosom whence it lately flow'd.
Affrighted Maids th'insulting Foe to shun
To screaming Mothers for Protection run,
But neither earnest Crys, nor Youthful Charms
Can melt th'Invader, and Arrest his Arms.
The Cruel, Deaf, and Unrelenting Spear
Shall not Compassion's tender Accents hear,
Or mov'd by Mercy, Youth or Beauty spare.
Thou mighty City, Gaul's Imperial Head
Which hast so Wide thy Fame and Conquests spred,
And in proud Triumph Captive Princes led,
Which as an Empress hast been long renown'd,
Enrich'd with Spoils, which Power and Plenty crown'd,
Thy Day's at hand, thy fatal Hour is come
That brings at last th'Irrevocable Doom.
And dash'd to pieces on the Pavement ly.
Th'Inexorable Sword around shall rage
Without distruction made of Sex or Age.
The fierce Destroyer shall thy Nobles meet,
And lay thy Youth in heaps in every street.
Children shall trembling to their Father sly,
And at his feet shall by the Javelin dy.
Scar'd Infants cling about the Mothers neck,
And on the Invader look with Horror back,
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The Parent's Bosom whence it lately flow'd.
Affrighted Maids th'insulting Foe to shun
To screaming Mothers for Protection run,
But neither earnest Crys, nor Youthful Charms
Can melt th'Invader, and Arrest his Arms.
The Cruel, Deaf, and Unrelenting Spear
Shall not Compassion's tender Accents hear,
Or mov'd by Mercy, Youth or Beauty spare.
Thou mighty City, Gaul's Imperial Head
Which hast so Wide thy Fame and Conquests spred,
And in proud Triumph Captive Princes led,
Which as an Empress hast been long renown'd,
Enrich'd with Spoils, which Power and Plenty crown'd,
Thy Day's at hand, thy fatal Hour is come
That brings at last th'Irrevocable Doom.
| King Arthur | |