The Green Bay Tree

Charles Mackay 1814 (Perth) – 1889 (London)



'Where is the place of their first fond meeting,
'Where, oh where, is that green bay tree,
'Under whose cover
'The maid and her lover
'Plighted their troth and their constancy?'
O the winter nights were bleak and dreary,
The storms of summer were fierce and free;
Its trunk is shattered,
Its branches are scattered,
O! withered and dead is that green bay tree!

'Where are the lovers who courted its shadow,
'Where, oh where, may those fond ones be?
'The troth which they plighted,
'How is it requited-
'Say, have they forgotten that green bay tree?'
The lover was fickle, and would not remember;
He met with another more fair than she;
For her-broken-hearted,
Her peace hath departed,
The maiden doth fade like the green bay tree!

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

39 sec read
23

Quick analysis:

Scheme XABBAAACCA XACCABADDA
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 736
Words 132
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 10, 10

Charles Mackay

Charles Mackay was a Scottish poet, journalist, author, anthologist, novelist, and songwriter, remembered mainly for his book Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds. more…

All Charles Mackay poems | Charles Mackay Books

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