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1770–1850

SAXON CONQUEST

William Wordsworth

Nor wants the cause the panic-striking aid Of hallelujahstost from hill to hill — For instant victory. But Heaven's high will Permits a second and a darker shade

Of Pagan night. Afflicted and dismayed, The Relics of the sword flee to the mountains: O wretched Land! whose tears have flowed like fountains; Whose arts and honours in the dust are laid

By men yet scarcely conscious of a care For other monuments than those of Earth; Who, as the fieldsand woods have given them birth, Willbuild their savage fortunes only there;

Content, if foss, and barrow, and the girth Of long-drawn rampart, witness what they were.

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SAXON CONQUEST · William Wordsworth · Poetry Cove