by Alfred Noyes (1880 - 1958)
Shakespeare's Kingdom
Language: English
Available translation(s): FRE
When Shakespeare came to London He met no shouting throngs; He carried in his knapsack A scroll of quiet songs. No proud heraldic trumpet Acclaimed him on his way; Their court and camp have perished; The songs live on for ay. Nobody saw or heard them, But, all around him there, Spirits of light and music Went treading the April air. He passed like any pedlar, Yet he had wealth untold. The galleons of th' armada Could not contain his gold. The kings rode on to darkness. In England's conquering hour, Unseen arrived her splendour; Unknown, her conquering power.
Authorship:
- by Alfred Noyes (1880 - 1958), "Shakespeare's Kingdom" [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Edward Elgar, Sir (1857 - 1934), "Shakespeare's Kingdom", first performed 1924, from Pageant of Empire, no. 1. [text verified 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , title 1: "Le royaume de Shakespeare", copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 20
Word count: 99