Analysis of After Waterloo



On the field of Waterloo we made Napoleon rue
That ever out of Elba he decided for to come,
For we finished him that day, and he had to run away,
And yield himself to Maitland on the Billy-ruffium.

`Twas a stubborn fight, no doubt, and the fortune wheeled about,
And the brave Mossoos kept coming most uncomfortable near,
And says Wellington the hero, as his hopes went down to zero,
`I wish to God that Blooker or the night was only here!'

But Blooker came at length, and we broke Napoleon's strength,
And the flower of his army--that's the old Imperial Guard -
They made a final sally, but they found they could not rally,
And at last they broke and fled, after fighting bitter hard.

Now Napoleon he had thought, when a British ship he sought,
And gave himself uncalled-for, in a manner, you might say,
He'd be treated like a king with the best of every thing,
And maybe have a palace for to live in every day.

He was treated very well, as became a noble swell,
But we couldn't leave him loose, not in Europe anywhere,
For we knew he would be making some gigantic undertaking,
While the trustful British lion was reposing in his lair.

We tried him once before near the European shore,
Having planted him in Elba, where he promised to remain,
But when he saw his chance, why, he bolted off to France,
And he made a lot of trouble--but it wouldn't do again.

Says the Prince to him, `You know, far away you'll have to go,
To a pleasant little island off the coast of Africay,
Where they tell me that the view of the ocean deep and blue,
Is remarkable extensive, and it's there you'll have to stay.'

So Napoleon wiped his eye, and he wished the Prince good-bye,
And being stony-broke, made the best of it he could,
And they kept him snugly pensioned, where his Royal Highness
mentioned,
And Napoleon Boneyparty is provided for for good.

Now of that I don't complain, but I ask and ask in vain,
Why me, a British soldier, as has lost a useful arm
Through fighting of the foe, when the trumpets ceased to blow,
Should be forced to feed the pigs on a little Surrey farm,

While him as fought with us, and created such a fuss,
And in the whole of Europe did a mighty deal of harm,
Should be kept upon a rock, like a precious fighting cock,
And be found in beer and baccy, which would suit me to a charm?


Scheme ABCB XXDX XEXE XCFC XGFG XHXX DFAC XIJXI HKDK JKXK
Poetic Form
Metre 1011101101001 110111110111 11101110111101 010111010101 10101110010101 00111101010001 0110001011111110 1111111011101 1111101101001 0010111010101001 110101011111110 01111011010101 101001111010111 01010110010111 111010110111001 010101011101001 11101011010101 1110111101010 111111101010100 101101011011 111101100101 10101011110101 1111111110111 011011101110101 10111111011111 1010101010111 11111011010101 101000100111111 101001110110111 0101011011111 0111101111010 10 0010011010111 11111011110101 11010101110101 1101011010111 11111011010101 1111110010101 00011101010111 11101011010101 01101011111101
Closest metre Iambic heptameter
Characters 2,264
Words 438
Sentences 10
Stanzas 10
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 5, 4, 4
Lines Amount 41
Letters per line (avg) 43
Words per line (avg) 11
Letters per stanza (avg) 178
Words per stanza (avg) 43
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

2:13 min read
104

Robert Fuller Murray

Robert Fuller Murray, was a Victorian poet. more…

All Robert Fuller Murray poems | Robert Fuller Murray Books

1 fan

Discuss this Robert Fuller Murray poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "After Waterloo" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 27 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/30977/after-waterloo>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    More poems by

    Robert Fuller Murray

    »

    April 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    3
    days
    20
    hours
    2
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    The use of words and phrases to create mental images and evoke sensory experiences is called _______.
    A personification
    B imagery
    C metaphor
    D symbolism