On the Earl of Strafford's Trial and Death
Great Strafford! worthy of that name, though allOf thee could be forgotten, but thy fall,Crush'd by imaginary treason's weight,Which too much merit did accumulate.As chemists gold from brass by fire would draw,Pretexts are into treason forged by law.His wisdom such, at once it did appearThree kingdoms' wonder, and three kingdoms' fear;Whilst single he stood forth, and seem'd, althoughEach had an army, as an equal foe.Such was his force of eloquence, to makeThe hearers more concern'd than he that spake;Each seem'd to act that part he came to see,And none was more a looker-on than he;So did he move our passions, some were knownTo wish, for the defence, the crime their own.Now private pity strove with public hate,Reason with rage, and eloquence with fate:Now they could him, if he could them, forgive;He's not too guilty, but too wise, to live:Less seem those facts which treason's nickname bore,Than such a fear'd ability for more.They after death their fears of him express,His innocence and their own guilt confess.Their legislative frenzy they repent,Enacting it should make no precedent.This fate he could have 'scaped, but would not loseHonour for life, but rather nobly choseDeath from their fears, than safety from his own,That his last action all the rest might crown.
Words in this poem
- looker n.
- One who looks. Looker-on, a spectator; one that looks on, but has no agency or part in an affair.
- defence n.
- The act of defending, or the state of being defended; protection, as from violence or danger. [F. défense, OF. defense, fem., defens, masc., fr. L. defensa (cf. Fence.]
- repent a.
- Prostrate and rooting; -- said of stems. Gray. [L. repens, -entis, creeping, p. pr. of repere to creep.]
- honour n.
- Esteem due or paid to worth; high estimation; respect; consideration; reverence; veneration; manifestation of respect or reverence. [OE. honor, honour, onour, onur, OF. honor, onor, honur, onur, honour, onour, F. honneur, fr. L. honor, honos.]
- nobly adv.
- Of noble extraction; as, nobly born or descended.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
On the Earl of Strafford's Trial and Death is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poetical Works of Edmund Waller and Sir John Denham, Project Gutenberg ebook #12322; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Edmund Waller, On the Earl of Strafford's Trial and Death, in Cooper's Hill, and Other Poems (1645–1668), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #12322, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/waller-denham/on-the-earl-of-strafford-s-trial-and-death.html, id L09149.
Form and metre
On the Earl of Strafford's Trial and Death is 30 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets, 87% of the lines: heroic couplets. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 88%). 95% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 7.0 syllables. 13 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 23% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in heroic couplets, other poems in iambic pentameter.
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 AABBCCDDEEFFGGHHBBIIJJKKLL--H- allA · fallA · weightB · accumulateB · drawC · lawC · appearD · fearD · althoughE · foeE · makeF · spakeF · seeG · heG · knownH · ownH · hateB · fateB · forgiveI · liveI · boreJ · moreJ · expressK · confessK · repentL · precedentL · lose · chose · ownH · crown
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 pentameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Great Strafford! worthy of that name, though all | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Of thee could be forgotten, but thy fall, | 10 | ····˘/˘··· |
| Crush'd by imaginary treason's weight, | 10 | ··˘/˘·˘/˘· |
| Which too much merit did accumulate. | 10 | ···/˘·˘/˘· |
| As chemists gold from brass by fire would draw, | 10 | ·/˘····/·· |
| Pretexts are into treason forged by law. | 10 | /····/˘··· |
| His wisdom such, at once it did appear | 10 | ·/˘·····˘/ |
| Three kingdoms' wonder, and three kingdoms' fear; | 10 | ·/˘/˘··/˘· |
| Whilst single he stood forth, and seem'd, although | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Each had an army, as an equal foe. | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Such was his force of eloquence, to make | 10 | ·····/˘˘·· |
| The hearers more concern'd than he that spake; | 10 | ·/˘·˘/···· |
| Each seem'd to act that part he came to see, | 10 | ·········· |
| And none was more a looker-on than he; | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| So did he move our passions, some were known | 10 | ····//˘··· |
| To wish, for the defence, the crime their own. | 10 | ····˘/···· |
| Now private pity strove with public hate, | 10 | ·/˘/˘··/˘· |
| Reason with rage, and eloquence with fate: | 10 | /˘···/˘˘·· |
| Now they could him, if he could them, forgive; | 10 | ········˘/ |
| He's not too guilty, but too wise, to live: | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Less seem those facts which treason's nickname bore, | 10 | ·····/˘/·· |
| Than such a fear'd ability for more. | 10 | ····˘/˘˘·· |
| They after death their fears of him express, | 10 | ········˘/ |
| His innocence and their own guilt confess. | 10 | ·/˘˘····˘/ |
| Their legislative frenzy they repent, | 10 | ·/˘·˘/˘·˘/ |
| Enacting it should make no precedent. | 10 | ˘/˘····/˘˘ |
| This fate he could have 'scaped, but would not lose | 10 | ·········· |
| Honour for life, but rather nobly chose | 10 | /˘···/˘/˘· |
| Death from their fears, than safety from his own, | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| That his last action all the rest might crown. | 10 | ···/˘····· |
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.