The Vow-Breaker

Henry King 1592 (Worminghall, Buckinghamshire) – 1669 (Chichester)



VVhen first the Magick of thine ey,
Usurpt upon my liberty,
Triumphing in my hearts spoyl, thou
Didst lock up thine in such a vow;
When I prove false, may the bright day
Be govern'd by the Moons pale ray!
(As I too well remember) This
Thou said'st, and seald'st it with a kiss.
O Heavens! and could so soon that Ty
Relent in slack Apostacy?
Could all thy Oaths, and morgag'd trust,
Vanish? like letters form'd in dust
Which the next wind scatters. Take heed,
Take heed Revolter; know this deed
Hath wrong'd the world, which will fare worse
By thy Example then thy Curse.
Hide that false Brow in mists. Thy shame
Ne're see light more, but the dimme flame
Of funeral Lamps. Thus sit and moane,
And learn to keep thy guilt at home.
Give it no vent; for if agen
Thy Love or Vowes betray more men,
At length (I fear) thy perjur'd breath
Will blow out day, and waken Death.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

52 sec read
120

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABCCDDEEFEGGHHIIJJKLKKMM
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 875
Words 167
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 24

Henry King

Henry King was an English poet who served as Bishop of Chichester. more…

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