Vittoria Colonna
VITTORIA COLONNA, on the death of her hushand, the Marchese diPescara, retired to her castle at Ischia (Inarime), and therewrote the Ode upon his death, which gained her the title ofDivine.
Once more, once more, Inarime,I see thy purple hills!--once moreI hear the billows of the bayWash the white pebbles on thy shore.
High o'er the sea-surge and the sands,Like a great galleon wrecked and castAshore by storms, thy castle stands,A mouldering landmark of the Past.
Upon its terrace-walk I seeA phantom gliding to and fro;It is Colonna,--it is sheWho lived and loved so long ago.
Pescara's beautiful young wife,The type of perfect womanhood,Whose life was love, the life of life,That time and change and death withstood.
For death, that breaks the marriage bandIn others, only closer pressedThe wedding-ring upon her handAnd closer locked and barred her breast.
She knew the life-long martyrdom,The weariness, the endless painOf waiting for some one to comeWho nevermore would come again.
The shadows of the chestnut-trees,The odor of the orange blooms,The song of birds, and, more than these,The silence of deserted rooms;
The respiration of the sea,The soft caresses of the air,All things in nature seemed to beBut ministers of her despair;
Till the o'erburdened heart, so longImprisoned in itself, found ventAnd voice in one impassioned songOf inconsolable lament.
Then as the sun, though hidden from sight,Transmutes to gold the leaden mist,Her life was interfused with light,From realms that, though unseen, exist,
Inarime! Inarime!Thy castle on the crags aboveIn dust shall crumble and decay,But not the memory of her love.
Words in this poem
- wrote v. i.
- To root with the snout. See 1st Root. [OE. wroten. See 1st Root.]
- galleon n.
- A sailing vessel of the 15th and following centuries, often having three or four decks, and used for war or commerce. The term is often rather indiscriminately applied to any large sailing vessel. [Sp. galeon, cf. F. galion; fr. LL. galeo, galio. See Galley.]
- closer n.
- One who, or that which, closes; specifically, a boot closer. See under Boot.
- martyrdom n.
- The condition of a martyr; the death of a martyr; the suffering of death on account of adherence to the Christian faith, or to any cause. [Martyr + -dom.]
- nevermore adv.
- Never again; at no time hereafter. Testament of Love. Tyndale.
- impassioned p. p.
- Actuated or characterized by passion or zeal; showing warmth of feeling; ardent; animated; excited; as, an impassioned orator or discourse.
- inconsolable a.
- Not consolable; incapable of being consoled; grieved beyond susceptibility of comfort; disconsolate. [L. inconsolabilis: cf. F. inconsolable. See In- not, and Console.]
- unseen a.
- Not seen or discovered.
- shall v. i.
- To owe; to be under obligation for. [OE. shal, schal, imp. sholde, scholde, AS. scal, sceal, I am obliged, imp. scolde, sceolde, inf. sculan; akin to OS. skulan, pres. skal, imp. skolda, D. zullen,]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Vittoria Colonna is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Complete Poetical Works of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Project Gutenberg ebook #1365; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Vittoria Colonna, in A Psalm of Life, and Other Poems (1839–1882), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #1365, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/longfellow-poems/vittoria-colonna.html, id L17783.
Form and metre
Vittoria Colonna is 48 lines in 12 stanzas of 4 lines each. The rhyme scheme is ABAB, complete in 11 of its 12 stanzas. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 88%). 91% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 8.7 syllables. 2 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 38% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in iambic tetrameter.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 2 ABAB inarimeA · moreB · bayA · shoreB
- 3 ABAB sandsA · castB · standsA · pastB
- 4 ABAB seeA · froB · sheA · agoB
- 5 ABAB wifeA · womanhoodB · lifeA · withstoodB
- 6 ABAB bandA · pressedB · handA · breastB
- 7 ABAB martyrdomA · painB · comeA · againB
- 8 ABAB treesA · bloomsB · theseA · roomsB
- 9 ABAB seaA · airB · beA · despairB
- 10 ABAB longA · ventB · songA · lamentB
- 11 ABAB sightA · mistB · lightA · existB
- 12 ABAB inarimeA · aboveB · decayA · loveB
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against iambic tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| VITTORIA COLONNA, on the death of her hushand, the Marchese di | 18 | ˘/˘˘/˘········˘/˘· |
| Pescara, retired to her castle at Ischia (Inarime), and there | 17 | ···˘/··/˘········ |
| wrote the Ode upon his death, which gained her the title of | 14 | ···········/˘· |
| Divine. | 2 | ˘/ |
| Once more, once more, Inarime, | 7 | ······· |
| I see thy purple hills!--once more | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| I hear the billows of the bay | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Wash the white pebbles on thy shore. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| High o'er the sea-surge and the sands, | 8 | ········ |
| Like a great galleon wrecked and cast | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Ashore by storms, thy castle stands, | 8 | ˘/···/˘· |
| A mouldering landmark of the Past. | 8 | ·/˘/···· |
| Upon its terrace-walk I see | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| A phantom gliding to and fro; | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| It is Colonna,--it is she | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| Who lived and loved so long ago. | 8 | ······˘/ |
| Pescara's beautiful young wife, | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| The type of perfect womanhood, | 8 | ···/·/˘· |
| Whose life was love, the life of life, | 8 | ········ |
| That time and change and death withstood. | 8 | ······˘/ |
| For death, that breaks the marriage band | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| In others, only closer pressed | 8 | ·/˘/˘/˘· |
| The wedding-ring upon her hand | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| And closer locked and barred her breast. | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| She knew the life-long martyrdom, | 8 | ·····/˘˘ |
| The weariness, the endless pain | 8 | ·/˘˘·/˘· |
| Of waiting for some one to come | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Who nevermore would come again. | 8 | ·/˘···˘/ |
| The shadows of the chestnut-trees, | 8 | ·/···/·· |
| The odor of the orange blooms, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| The song of birds, and, more than these, | 8 | ········ |
| The silence of deserted rooms; | 8 | ·/˘·˘/˘· |
| The respiration of the sea, | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| The soft caresses of the air, | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| All things in nature seemed to be | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| But ministers of her despair; | 8 | ·/˘˘··˘/ |
| Till the o'erburdened heart, so long | 8 | ········ |
| Imprisoned in itself, found vent | 8 | ˘/˘·˘/·· |
| And voice in one impassioned song | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| Of inconsolable lament. | 8 | ······˘/ |
| Then as the sun, though hidden from sight, | 9 | ·····/˘·· |
| Transmutes to gold the leaden mist, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Her life was interfused with light, | 8 | ········ |
| From realms that, though unseen, exist, | 8 | ····˘/˘/ |
| Inarime! Inarime! | 6 | ······ |
| Thy castle on the crags above | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| In dust shall crumble and decay, | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| But not the memory of her love. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
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