FROM him did forty million serfs, endow’d
Each with six feet of death-due soil, receive
Rich freeborn lifelong land, whereon to sheave
Their country’s harvest. These to-day aloud
Demand of Heaven a Father’s blood,-sore bow’d
With tears and thrilled with wrath; who, while they grieve,
On every guilty head would fain achieve
All torment by his edicts disallow’d.
He stayed the knout’s red-ravening fangs; and first
Of Russian traitors, his own murderers go
White to the tomb. While he,-laid foully low
With limbs red-rent, with festering brain which erst
Willed kingly freedom,-‘gainst the deed accurst
To God bears witness of his people’s woe.
(Dante Gabriel Rossetti)
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Based on Topics: Sadness Poems, Heaven Poems, Fathers Poems, Anger PoemsBased on Keywords: serfs, festering, traitors, freeborn, foully, edicts, disallow, freedom-, sheave, knout, red-rent