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138
ELIZABETH AT TILBURY
The famous Review at Tilbury appears to have followed the defeat of the Armada. See Mr. Motley's excellent account in the History of the United Netherlands:—with his earlier work, by far the most valuable literary gift which England has yet received from America.
Autumn, 1588
Let them come, come never so proudly,
O'er the green waves in tall array;
Silver clarions menacing loudly,
‘All the Spains’ on their pennons gay;
High on deck of their gilded galleys
Our light sailers they scorn below:—
We will scatter them, plague, and shatter them,
Till their flag hauls down to the foe!
For our oath we swear
By the name we bear
By England's Queen and England free and fair,—
Her's ever and her's still, come life, come death:
God save Elizabeth!
O'er the green waves in tall array;
Silver clarions menacing loudly,
‘All the Spains’ on their pennons gay;
High on deck of their gilded galleys
Our light sailers they scorn below:—
We will scatter them, plague, and shatter them,
Till their flag hauls down to the foe!
For our oath we swear
By the name we bear
By England's Queen and England free and fair,—
Her's ever and her's still, come life, come death:
God save Elizabeth!
Sidonía, Recalde, and Leyva
Watch from their bulwarks in swarthy scorn;
Lords and Princes by Philip's favour:
We by birthright are noble born!
Freemen born of the blood of freemen,
Sons of Cressy and Flodden are we:
We shall sunder them, fire, and plunder them,—
English boats on the English sea!
And our oath we swear
By the name we bear
By England's Queen and England free and fair,—
Her's ever and her's still, come life, come death:
God save Elizabeth!
Watch from their bulwarks in swarthy scorn;
Lords and Princes by Philip's favour:
We by birthright are noble born!
139
Sons of Cressy and Flodden are we:
We shall sunder them, fire, and plunder them,—
English boats on the English sea!
And our oath we swear
By the name we bear
By England's Queen and England free and fair,—
Her's ever and her's still, come life, come death:
God save Elizabeth!
Drake and Frobisher, Hawkins and Howard,
Raleigh, Cavendish, Cecil and Brooke,
Hang like wasps by the flagships tower'd,
Sting their way through the thrice-piled oak:—
Let them range their seven-mile crescent,
Giant galleons, canvass wide!
Ours will harry them, board, and carry them,
Plucking the plumes of the Spanish pride.
For our oath we swear
By the name we bear,
By England's Queen and England free and fair,—
Her's ever and her's still, come life, come death:
God save Elizabeth!
Raleigh, Cavendish, Cecil and Brooke,
Hang like wasps by the flagships tower'd,
Sting their way through the thrice-piled oak:—
Let them range their seven-mile crescent,
Giant galleons, canvass wide!
Ours will harry them, board, and carry them,
Plucking the plumes of the Spanish pride.
For our oath we swear
By the name we bear,
By England's Queen and England free and fair,—
Her's ever and her's still, come life, come death:
God save Elizabeth!
140
—Has God risen in wrath and scatter'd,
Have his tempests smote them in scorn?
Past the Orcades, dumb and tatter'd,
'Mong sea-beasts do they drift forlorn?
We were as lions hungry for battle;
God has made our battle his own!
God has scatter'd them, sunk, and shatter'd them:
Give the glory to him alone!
While our oath we swear
By the name we bear,
By England's Queen and England free and fair,—
Her's ever and her's still, come life, come death:
God save Elizabeth!
Have his tempests smote them in scorn?
Past the Orcades, dumb and tatter'd,
'Mong sea-beasts do they drift forlorn?
We were as lions hungry for battle;
God has made our battle his own!
God has scatter'd them, sunk, and shatter'd them:
Give the glory to him alone!
While our oath we swear
By the name we bear,
By England's Queen and England free and fair,—
Her's ever and her's still, come life, come death:
God save Elizabeth!
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