Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley's "England in 1819" is an expression of political anger and hope. First sent as an untitled addition to a private letter, the sonnet vents Shelley's outrage at the crises plaguing his home country during one of the most chaotic years of its history. The poem begins by attacking England's leaders and institutions, deeming the monarchy a disgraceful leech draining the country of its life force. The aristocracy is totally out of touch, the speaker continues, while starving citizens remain violently oppressed by a greedy government that crushes the freedom of those it's meant to defend. Religion, meanwhile, offers no comfort, the Church itself having become corrupt and "Christless." In its final couplet, the poem then shifts to a vision of national redemption: all of these institutions are dead, the speaker says, but England will one day rise like a mythical bird from their ashes.
|
Get
LitCharts
|
|
The Full Text of “England in 1819”
1An old, mad, blind, despised, and dying king,—
2Princes, the dregs of their dull race, who flow
3Through public scorn,—mud from a muddy spring,—
4Rulers who neither see, nor feel, nor know,
5But leech-like to their fainting country cling,
6Till they drop, blind in blood, without a blow,—
7A people starved and stabbed in the untilled field,—
8An army, which liberticide and prey
9Makes as a two-edged sword to all who wield,
10Golden and sanguine laws which tempt and slay;
11Religion Christless, Godless—a book sealed;
12A Senate,—Time's worst statute unrepealed,—
13Are graves, from which a glorious Phantom may
14Burst, to illumine our tempestous day.
The Full Text of “England in 1819”
1An old, mad, blind, despised, and dying king,—
2Princes, the dregs of their dull race, who flow
3Through public scorn,—mud from a muddy spring,—
4Rulers who neither see, nor feel, nor know,
5But leech-like to their fainting country cling,
6Till they drop, blind in blood, without a blow,—
7A people starved and stabbed in the untilled field,—
8An army, which liberticide and prey
9Makes as a two-edged sword to all who wield,
10Golden and sanguine laws which tempt and slay;
11Religion Christless, Godless—a book sealed;
12A Senate,—Time's worst statute unrepealed,—
13Are graves, from which a glorious Phantom may
14Burst, to illumine our tempestous day.
-
“England in 1819” Summary
-
-
“England in 1819” Themes
-
National Destruction and Rebirth
- See where this theme is active in the poem.
-
-
Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “England in 1819”
-
Line 1
An old, mad, blind, despised, and dying king,—
-
Lines 2-3
Princes, the dregs of their dull race, who flow
Through public scorn,—mud from a muddy spring,— -
Lines 4-6
Rulers who neither see, nor feel, nor know,
But leech-like to their fainting country cling,
Till they drop, blind in blood, without a blow,— -
Lines 7-9
A people starved and stabbed in the untilled field,—
An army, which liberticide and prey
Makes as a two-edged sword to all who wield, -
Lines 10-12
Golden and sanguine laws which tempt and slay;
Religion Christless, Godless—a book sealed;
A Senate,—Time's worst statute unrepealed,— -
Lines 13-14
Are graves, from which a glorious Phantom may
Burst, to illumine our tempestous day.
-
-
“England in 1819” Symbols
-
Muddy Water
- See where this symbol appears in the poem.
-
Leeches
- See where this symbol appears in the poem.
-
The Double-Edged Sword
- See where this symbol appears in the poem.
-
-
“England in 1819” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language
-
Metaphor
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
Simile
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
Alliteration
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
Assonance
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
Caesura
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
Cacophony
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
Personification
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
Repetition
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
Enjambment
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
Allusion
- See where this poetic device appears in the poem.
-
-
“England in 1819” Vocabulary
Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.
- Dregs
- Leech-like
- Untilled
- Liberticide
- Prey
- Sanguine
- Statute
- Unrepealed
- Illumine
- Tempestuous
-
- See where this vocabulary word appears in the poem.
-
Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “England in 1819”
-
Form
-
Meter
-
Rhyme Scheme
-
-
“England in 1819” Speaker
-
-
“England in 1819” Setting
-
-
Literary and Historical Context of “England in 1819”
-
-
More “England in 1819” Resources
-
External Resources
-
A Biography of the Poet — Read an introduction to Shelley's life and work at the Poetry Foundation.
-
The Poem's First Printing — Read the poem as printed in "The Poetical Works of Percy Bysshe Shelley" (1839, edited by Mary Shelley), where it appears for the first time under the title "England in 1819."
-
Another Revolutionary Shelley Poem — Read "The Mask of Anarchy" (a.k.a. "The Masque of Anarchy", another famous Shelley poem inspired by the Peterloo Massacre of 1819).
-
The Peterloo Massacre — Watch a BBC video about the Peterloo Massacre, one of the events that inspired Shelley's fury in "England in 1819."
-
King George III — Watch a Smithsonian Channel video on the mental illness of King George III, one of the issues to which Shelley responded in "England in 1819."
-
The Prince Regent (George IV) — Read a Britannica article on King George IV, the Prince Regent and effective ruler of England during the period in which Shelley wrote the poem.
-
-
LitCharts on Other Poems by Percy Bysshe Shelley
-
Ask LitCharts AI:
The answer to your questions
Powered by LitCharts content and AI.
