German Faith
Once for the sceptre of Germany, fought with Bavarian LouisFrederick, of Hapsburg descent, both being called to the throne.But the envious fortune of war delivered the AustrianInto the hands of the foe, who overcame him in fight.With the throne he purchased his freedom, pledging his honorFor the victor to draw 'gainst his own people his sword;But what he vowed when in chains, when free he could not accomplish,So, of his own free accord, put on his fetters again.Deeply moved, his foe embraced him,--and from thenceforwardAs a friend with a friend, pledged they the cup at the feast;Arm-in-arm, the princes on one couch slumbered together.While a still bloodier hate severed the nations apart.'Gainst the army of Frederick Louis now went, and behind himLeft the foe he had fought, over Bavaria to watch."Ay, it is true! 'Tis really true! I have it in writing!"Thus did the Pontifex cry, when he first heard of the news.
Words in this poem
- sceptre n.
- A staff or baton borne by a sovereign, as a ceremonial badge or emblem of authority; a royal mace. [F. sceptre, L. sceptrum, from Gr. shaft. See Shaft, and cf. Scape a stem, shaft.]
- bavarian a.
- Of or pertaining to Bavaria.
- envious a.
- Malignant; mischievous; spiteful. [OF. envios, F. envieux, fr. L. invidiosus, fr. invidia envy. See Envy, and cf. Invidious.]
- thenceforward adv.
- From that time onward; thenceforth.
- went n.
- Course; way; path; journey; direction.
- pontifex n.
- A high priest; a pontiff. [L.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
German Faith is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poems of Schiller — Third period, Project Gutenberg ebook #6796; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Friedrich Schiller, German Faith, in The Poems of Schiller: Third Period (1805), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #6796, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/schiller-third-period/german-faith.html, id L21868.
Form and metre
German Faith is 16 lines in a single stanza. This poem did not settle on a metre of its own; the book it comes from is in iambic tetrameter.
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.
- 1 -AA--B--B------- louis · throneA · austrianA · fight · honor · swordB · accomplish · again · thenceforwardB · feast · together · apart · him · watch · writing · news
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Once for the sceptre of Germany, fought with Bavarian Louis | 15 | ···/˘·/˘··˘/˘/˘ |
| Frederick, of Hapsburg descent, both being called to the throne. | 14 | /˘·/˘˘/·/˘···· |
| But the envious fortune of war delivered the Austrian | 15 | ··/˘/˘··˘/˘·/˘˘ |
| Into the hands of the foe, who overcame him in fight. | 14 | ········/˘/··· |
| With the throne he purchased his freedom, pledging his honor | 14 | ····/˘·/˘/˘·/˘ |
| For the victor to draw 'gainst his own people his sword; | 13 | ··/˘·····/˘·· |
| But what he vowed when in chains, when free he could not accomplish, | 15 | ············˘/˘ |
| So, of his own free accord, put on his fetters again. | 14 | ·····˘/···/˘˘/ |
| Deeply moved, his foe embraced him,--and from thenceforward | 14 | /˘···˘/······· |
| As a friend with a friend, pledged they the cup at the feast; | 14 | ·······˘······ |
| Arm-in-arm, the princes on one couch slumbered together. | 14 | ····/˘···/˘˘/˘ |
| While a still bloodier hate severed the nations apart. | 14 | ···/˘˘·/˘·/˘˘/ |
| 'Gainst the army of Frederick Louis now went, and behind him | 15 | ··/˘·/˘/˘······ |
| Left the foe he had fought, over Bavaria to watch. | 14 | ········˘/˘˘·· |
| "Ay, it is true! 'Tis really true! I have it in writing!" | 14 | ·····/˘·····/˘ |
| Thus did the Pontifex cry, when he first heard of the news. | 14 | ···/˘˘········ |
The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.