Tuesday Poem: “Lepanto” by GK Chesterton
Lepanto
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by GK Chesterton
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Source: The Collected Poems of G. K. Chesterton (1927); Poetry Foundation
About The Poem:
First written in 1911 and published during World War 1, I am aware that this rousing ballad is probably not a politically correct choice in this day and age — but I loved it as a kid, not least for the rich, rolling language, vivid visual images, and epic-heroic style.
Later, curiosity about the battle of Lepanto and Don John of Austria led me to read in some depth on the history of the period. More recently, I was reading material on the life of Miguel Cervantes, author of Don Quixote, who served at the battle of Lepanto — which is the reference at the end of the poem and led to the decision to feature the ballad of a Tuesday.
Critic, Joseph John Reilly (“Chesterton as poet”, Of Books and Men, Ayer Publishing, 1968) said: “…In Lepanto, Chesterton reveals all his poetic gifts at their best: rhetoric in the high sense … music almost as rich as Tennyson’s, varied by a chant in which the tread of marching men lives again; color varied and brilliant with the splendor of the East.” Reilly also notes the way that Chesterton relieves the martial vigour of the poem with contrasting lines that are soft and quiet. (Source: Wikipedia.)
About The Poet:
You can read a full biography of Chesterton on the Poetry Foundation site: GK Chesterton