Poland
Poland - context Summary
Response to Poland's Partitions
Tennyson’s "Poland" is a moral protest poem directed to God about the brutal subjugation of Poland during the Partitions and Russian aggression. The speaker laments Poland’s suffering, names the “Muscovite” oppressor, and confesses collective guilt for having once smiled as Poland was divided. The poem urges empathy and contrition, framing foreign domination as a moral wrong that demands repentance and aid for the oppressed.
Read Complete AnalysesHow long, O God, shall men be ridden down, And trampled under by the last and least Of men? The heart of Poland hath not ceased To quiver, tho’ her sacred blood doth drown The fields; and out of every smouldering town Cries to Thee, lest brute Power be increased, Till that o’ergrown Barbarian in the East Transgress his ample bound to some new crown:— Cries to thee, “Lord, how long shall these things be? How long this icyhearted Muscovite Oppress the region?” Us, O Just and Good, Forgive, who smiled when she was torn in three; Us, who stand now, when we should aid the right— A matter to be wept with tears of blood!
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