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On L[or]d H[olland']s Seat near M[argat]e, K[en]t


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On L[or]d H[olland']s Seat near M[argat]e, K[en]t


1 Old and abandoned by each venal friend,
2     Here H[olland] took the pious resolution
3 To smuggle some few years and strive to mend
4     A broken character and constitution.
5 On this congenial spot he fixed his choice;
6     Earl Godwin trembled for his neighbouring sand;
7 Here sea-gulls scream and cormorants rejoice,
8     And mariners, though shipwrecked, dread to land.
9 Here reign the blustering North and blighting East,
10     No tree is heard to whisper, bird to sing:
11 Yet nature cannot furnish out the feast,
12     Art he invokes new horrors still to bring.
13 Now mouldering fanes and battlements arise,
14     Arches and turrets nodding to their fall,
15 Unpeopled palaces delude his eyes,
16     And mimic desolation covers all.
17 'Ah', said the sighing peer, 'had Bute been true,
18     Nor Shelburne's, Rigby's, Calcraft's friendship vain,
19 Far other scenes than these had blessed our view
20     And realised the ruins that we feign.
21 Purged by the sword and beautified by fire,
22     Then had we seen proud London's hated walls:
23 Owls might have hooted in St Peter's choir,
24     And foxes stunk and littered in St Paul's.'

Expanding the poem lines (+) shows the results of a computationally facilitated analysis of the text. These results should be considered as a basis for deeper interpretative enquiry such as can be found in the notes and queries.

0 On L[or]d H[olland']s Seat near M[argat]e, K[en]t

Metrical notation:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/ -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/ -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/ -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/
Metrical foot type:  iambic (-+)
Metrical foot number:  pentameter (5 feet)
Rhyme scheme:  abab
Rhyme (stanza position):  cross (abab)
Syllable pattern:  10.10.10.10
Stanza:  quatrain (4 lines)
Genre(s):  satire, inscription
Theme(s):  politics

Notation symbols: | (foot boundary), || (caesura), / (metrical line boundary), + (metrically prominent), - (metrically non-prominent)


1 Old and abandoned by each venal friend,    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  friend   |   Rhyme sound:  /end/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Rhythm:  +-|-+|-+|-+|-+
Syllables:  10
Figure:  assonance (phonological): and/abandoned /æ/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): each/venal /iː/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): abandoned/venal/friend /n/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): abandoned/by /b/

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2     Here H[olland] took the pious resolution    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  resolution   |   Rhyme sound:  /uːʃən/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  consonance (phonological): H[olland]/resolution /l/

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3 To smuggle some few years and strive to mend    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  mend   |   Rhyme sound:  /end/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): smuggle/some/strive /s/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): To/few/to /uː/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): smuggle/some /ʌ/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): smuggle/some/strive /s/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): some/mend /m/

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4     A broken character and constitution.    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  constitution   |   Rhyme sound:  /uːʃən/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): character/constitution /k/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): character/and /æ/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): broken/character/constitution /k/

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5 On this congenial spot he fixed his choice;    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  choice   |   Rhyme sound:  /ɔɪs/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): he/his /h/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): On/spot /ɒ/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): this/fixed/his /ɪ/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): congenial/he /iː/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): On/congenial /n/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): this/spot/choice /s/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): congenial/fixed /k/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): he/his /h/

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6     Earl Godwin trembled for his neighbouring sand;    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  sand   |   Rhyme sound:  /ænd/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  consonance (phonological): neighbouring/sand /n/

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7 Here sea-gulls scream and cormorants rejoice,    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  rejoice   |   Rhyme sound:  /ɔɪs/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): sea-gulls/scream /s/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): sea-gulls/scream /iː/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): sea-gulls/scream/rejoice /s/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): scream/cormorants /m/

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8     And mariners, though shipwrecked, dread to land.    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  land   |   Rhyme sound:  /ænd/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  assonance (phonological): And/mariners/land /æ/

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9 Here reign the blustering North and blighting East,    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  East   |   Rhyme sound:  /iːst/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): blustering/blighting /b/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): reign/North /n/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): blustering/blighting /b/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): blustering/East /s/

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10     No tree is heard to whisper, bird to sing:    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  sing   |   Rhyme sound:  /ɪŋ/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  assonance (phonological): is/whisper/sing /ɪ/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): heard/bird /ɜː/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): to/to /uː/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): heard/bird /d/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): whisper/sing /s/

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11 Yet nature cannot furnish out the feast,    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  feast   |   Rhyme sound:  /iːst/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): furnish/feast /f/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): Yet/out /t/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): nature/cannot/furnish /n/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): furnish/feast /f/

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12     Art he invokes new horrors still to bring.    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  bring   |   Rhyme sound:  /ɪŋ/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): he/horrors /h/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): invokes/still/bring /ɪ/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): new/to /uː/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): he/horrors /h/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): invokes/new /n/

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13 Now mouldering fanes and battlements arise,    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  arise   |   Rhyme sound:  /aɪz/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  assonance (phonological): and/battlements /æ/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): Now/fanes /n/

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14     Arches and turrets nodding to their fall,    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  fall   |   Rhyme sound:  /ɔːl/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10

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15 Unpeopled palaces delude his eyes,    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  eyes   |   Rhyme sound:  /aɪz/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  assonance (phonological): delude/his /ɪ/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): Unpeopled/palaces /p/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): palaces/delude /l/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): his/eyes /z/

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16     And mimic desolation covers all.    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  all   |   Rhyme sound:  /ɔːl/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  consonance (phonological): desolation/all /l/

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17 'Ah', said the sighing peer, 'had Bute been true,    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  true   |   Rhyme sound:  /uː/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): said/sighing /s/
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): Bute/been /b/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): Bute/true /uː/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): said/had /d/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): said/sighing /s/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): Bute/been /b/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): Bute/true /t/
Figure:  ecphonesis (pragmatic): Ah...

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18     Nor Shelburne's, Rigby's, Calcraft's friendship vain,    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  vain   |   Rhyme sound:  /eɪn/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  assonance (phonological): Shelburne's/friendship /e/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): Nor/friendship/vain /n/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): Shelburne's/Calcraft's /l/

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19 Far other scenes than these had blessed our view    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  view   |   Rhyme sound:  /uː/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): than/these /ð/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): scenes/these /iː/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): than/had /æ/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): other/than/these /ð/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): scenes/than /n/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): scenes/blessed /s/

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20     And realised the ruins that we feign.    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  feign   |   Rhyme sound:  /eɪn/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): realised/ruins /r/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): And/that /æ/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): realised/ruins /r/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): ruins/feign /n/

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21 Purged by the sword and beautified by fire,    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  fire   |   Rhyme sound:  /aɪə/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): by/beautified/by /b/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): by/beautified/by/fire /aɪ/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): by/beautified/by /b/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): sword/beautified /d/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): beautified/fire /f/
Figure:  diacope (morphological): by/by

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22     Then had we seen proud London's hated walls:    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  walls   |   Rhyme sound:  /ɔːlz/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): had/hated /h/
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): we/walls /w/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): we/seen /iː/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): Then/seen/London's /n/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): had/hated /h/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): had/proud /d/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): we/walls /w/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): London's/walls /l/

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23 Owls might have hooted in St Peter's choir,    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  choir   |   Rhyme sound:  /aɪə/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): have/hooted /h/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): might/choir /aɪ/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): might/hooted/Peter's /t/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): have/hooted /h/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): in/St /n/

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24     And foxes stunk and littered in St Paul's.'    
Rhyme:  abab   |   Rhyme word(s):  Paul's   |   Rhyme sound:  /ɔːlz/   |   Rhyme (line position):  end
Metre:  -+|-+|-+|-+|-+/   |   Syllables:  10
Figure:  alliteration (phonological): stunk/St /s/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): And/and /æ/
Figure:  assonance (phonological): littered/in /ɪ/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): stunk/St /s/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): littered/Paul's /l/
Figure:  consonance (phonological): in/St /n/

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Expanding the poem lines (+) shows notes and queries taken from various critical editions of Gray's works, as well as those contributed by users of the Archive. There are 61 textual and 36 explanatory notes/queries.

All notes and queries are shown by default.

0 On L[or]d H[olland']s Seat near M[argat]e, K[en]t 5 Explanatory, 8 Textual

Title/Paratext] "[In June 1766, after Gray [...]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"[In June 1766, after Gray had been spending two months with ''Reverend Billy,'' the Rev. William Robinson, at his rectory of Denton, in Kent, these verses were found in a drawer of the room he had occupied. The first four stanzas [ll. 1-16] were printed in the supplement to the Gentleman's Magazine for 1777. The two last stanzas [ll. 17-24] were added incorrectly in the same periodical for February 1778, and the text finally corrected in February 1782. The house was that built for Lord Holland in imitation of Cicero's Formian villa at Baiae, by Lord Newborough. The variations in the notes are taken from a copy in Wharton's handwriting now at the British Museum. [- Ed.]]"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 135.

Title/Paratext] "These lines were written at [...]" J. Bradshaw, 1891.

"These lines were written at Denton in Kent, in June, 1766, when Gray was on a visit to the Rev. William Robinson, and were found in the drawer of Gray's dressing-table after he was gone. They were restored to him, for he had no other copy, and had forgotten them. Walpole writes: "I am very sorry that he ever wrote them and ever gave a copy of them. You may be sure I did not recommend them being printed in his works, nor were they."
    The first four stanzas appeared in the supplement to the "Gentleman's Magazine" for 1777, prefaced by the following letter from the correspondent who sent them:—"The immortal Gray is sufficiently known by his elegiac poetry. The world has not yet known to revere him as a lover of his country, and an abhorrer of its intestine foes. Learn from the underwritten stanzas, suggested by a view, in 1766, of the late lord H——d's seat and ruins at King's-gate, no longer to consider Gray as a mere man of rhyme, but as possessing a constitutional spirit of liberty congenial to Churchill's."
    In February, 1778, the two last stanzas were supplied, but incorrectly, by another correspondent; and in January, 1782, in a third letter to the "Gentleman's Magazine" the errors in the previous one were pointed out, the writer "lamenting that Mr. Gray did not apply himself more to satire in which undoubtedly he would have excelled." The first edition of Gray's Poems in which the verses appeared was Stephen Jones'."

The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891, 265-266.

Title/Paratext] "The house was that built [...]" J. Bradshaw, 1891.

"The house was that built for Lord Holland as a correct imitation of Cicero's Formian villa at Baiae, under the superintendence of Sir T. Wynne, afterwards Lord Newborough."

The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891, 266.

Title/Paratext] "[These verses were written in [...]" A.L. Poole/L. Whibley, 1950 [1st ed. 1919].

"[These verses were written in 1768 when Gray was staying with the Rev. William Robinson at Denton in Kent (see Correspondence, Appendix T). According to Mitford, they were found in the drawer of his dressing-table after his departure. There is a copy in Wharton's handwriting among the Egerton MS. 2400 f. 232, from which the text is now printed. The verses were printed anonymously and without Gray's permission in The New Foundling Hospital for Wit (1769). The version printed by Mitford is that published by Stephen Jones in 1800.]"

The Poems of Gray and Collins. Edited by Austin Lane Poole. Revised by Leonard Whibley. Third edition. Oxford editions of standard authors series. London: Oxford UP, 1937, reprinted 1950 [1st ed. 1919], 115.

Title/Paratext] "First printed (anonymously) without Gray's [...]" H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"First printed (anonymously) without Gray's consent in The New Foundling Hospital for Wit, London, 1769, iii. 34-35 (NF). There is a copy by Wharton in Brit. Mus. Egerton MS. 2400, f. 232 (Wh), the text followed here. Mitford (Mt) follows the text in Stephen Jones's edition (London, 1800). The names of individuals are filled in with dashes or asterisks in NF and Mt."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

Title/Paratext] "Title: Inscription for the Villa [...]" H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"Title: Inscription for the Villa of a decay'd Satesman [sic] on the Sea-Coast. N[ew] F[oundling]."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

Title/Paratext] "Henry Fox (1705-74), first Lord [...]" H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"Henry Fox (1705-74), first Lord Holland, a dissipated and corrupt politician, during his career was Secretary of State and Paymaster of the Forces. An ally of the Earl of Bute for a time, he finally was deserted by his political adherents. He specifically denounced Rigby, Shelburne, and Calcraft in a caustic poem, Lord Holland Returning from Italy, privately printed, 1767. Although personally a rather attractive man, he was probably the most thoroughly hated statesman of the age and consequently much embittered in his last years. He built an imitation classical villa at Kingsgate near Margate and constructed many artificial ruins (which became much more extensive when some of the buildings collapsed accidentally) near the villa. Gray wrote the poem while on a visit to Robinson at Denton, Kent, in the summer of 1768 and by an oversight left it in his dressing-table; it was returned to him later. He clearly wished it kept secret, for he wrote to Mason (T & W no. 489, 29 Dec. 1768), who must have mentioned or shown it: 'Oh wicked Scroddles! there you have gone & told my Arcanum Arcanorum to that leaky Mortal Palgrave [see explanatory notes to Invitation to Mason], who never conceals any thing he is trusted with; & there have I been forced to write to him, & (to bribe him to silence) have told him, how much I confided in his taciturnity, & twenty lies beside, the guilt of wch must fall on you at the last account. seriously you have done very wrong ... hitherto luckily nobody has taken any notice of it, nor (I hope) ever will.' The text used by Mitford is almost certainly corrupt and the identifications he suggests (see textual note to l. 18) incorrect. For a detailed account of the poem see T & W, Appendix T, and Whibley, TLS, 9 Oct. 1930, p. 805."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 228/229.

Title/Paratext] "Written in June 1768. The [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Written in June 1768. The dating is discussed at length by Whibley (Corresp iii 1259-62). Sir Egerton Brydges told Mitford (Works of Gray, 1835-43, I ciii) that G[ray]. wrote these lines during a visit to his friend William Robinson of Denton Court, Kent (one of whose daughters became Brydges's second wife), and that they were 'found in the drawer of Gray's dressing table after he was gone. They were restored to him; for he had no other copy, and had forgotten them.' The poem has usually been dated 1766, probably, as Whibley suggested, because the only letter by G. in Mason's Memoirs which mentions a visit to Kent was written in that year. But a letter from G. to Norton Nicholls, dated 26 Aug. 1766, specifically states that 'I did not go to Kingsgate, because it belong'd to my L[or]d Holland' (Corresp iii 927). G. did visit Robinson at Denton again in June 1768 and Whibley argues that G. wrote the poem on that occasion.
The suggestion is supported by the fact that G.'s poem almost certainly alludes to a poem by Lord Holland himself, Lord Holland returning from Italy 1767, which was privately printed in a broadsheet in that year. G. had heard a line of this poem by June 1767 (Corresp iii 962), and eventually saw the whole poem: ll. 17-20 of his own poem refer directly, it may be assumed, to the following passage by Holland, quoted from J. H. Jesse, George Selwyn and his Contemporaries (1843) ii 162-3: 'But, Rigby, what did I for thee endure! / Thy serpent's tooth admitted of no cure; / Lost converse, never thought of without tears; / Lost promised hope of my declining years! / O! what a heavy task 'tis to remove / Th'accustomed ties of confidence and love! / Friendship in anguish turn'd away her face, / While cunning Interest sneer'd at her disgrace. / And what has he, mistaken man! obtain'd / For broken faith? - for truth and honour stain'd? / Shelburne and Calcraft, - O!, the holy band, / See, see, with Gower caballing where they stand.'"

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 259.

Title/Paratext] "Henry Fox (1705-74) had been [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Henry Fox (1705-74) had been Secretary of State in the Newcastle ministry in 1755-56. At this period he had been friendly with Horace Walpole, through whom G[ray]. had in fact sought Fox's support for a friend in an election to the Mastership of Pembroke College. In a letter, dated 31 July 1756 (Walpole Correspondence xxx 127), which was never sent, Walpole wrote to Fox: 'Great poets have a right to command and none are so much their subjects as great men. I know you think Mr G[ray] the greatest poet we have and I know he thinks you the greatest man we have; judge if you can disobey him.' G.'s attitude to Fox soon changed. In 1757 Fox became Paymaster-General and proceeded to amass a huge fortune. In 1762 he became a member of Bute's cabinet and Leader of the House of Commons, playing an important role in ensuring that Parliament accepted the Peace of Paris in 1763. This success was attributed for many years to gross bribery and intimidation by Fox, partly because of the exaggerated accounts of Horace Walpole, who was of course G.'s main informant about politics. But, even if later historians have modified this familiar image of Fox, he was undoubtedly widely mistrusted by his contemporaries as an unscrupulous and self-interested schemer and between 1763 and 1765 many of his political allies abandoned or, as he believed, betrayed him. His political career virtually ended in 1763, when he was created Baron Holland of Foxley, but, after quarrelling with Bute and Shelburne, he managed to retain his lucrative post as Paymaster until he was forced to resign it in 1765. G. followed political events at this period with keen interest. In Sept. 1763 he wrote to Walpole: 'the present times are so little like any thing I remember, that you may excuse my curiosity: besides I really interest myself in these transactions, & can not persuade myself, that Quae supra nos, nihil ad nos' (Corresp ii 817).
After 1763 Holland, in poor health, travelled on the Continent and constructed the strange residence at Kingsgate, near Margate, which inspired G.'s poem. According to James Dallaway, Anecdotes of the Arts in England (1800) p. 385, the house itself was 'a correct imitation of Cicero's Formian villa, at Baiae'; and another account (Letters from Mrs Carter to Mrs Montagu, ed. M. Pennington (1817) iii 89) states that 'scattered around it [were] many fanciful representations of antique and ruined buildings'. William Cowper saw the estate at an early stage in its development in 1763, and was impressed by 'a fine piece of ruins, built by ... Lord Holland, at a great expense, which, the day after I saw it, tumbled down for nothing' (Correspondence, ed. T. Wright (1904) i 155). Horace Walpole described Kingsgate in a letter to Lady Ossory, 19 Aug. 1784 (Walpole Correspondence xxxiii 437): 'The situation is uncommon and cheerful, and the buildings and erections so odd, and so little resembling any one ever saw, that a view might to those who were never there, be passed for a prospect in some half-civilized island discovered by Capt. Cook'. In a letter to Mary Berry, 28 Sept. 1796 (Walpole Correspondence xii 110), Walpole described once more how Holland had 'scattered buildings of all sorts, but in no style of architecture that ever appeared before or has since, and with no connection with or to one another, and in all directions - and yet the oddity and number made that naked, though fertile soil, smile and look cheerful - Do you remember Gray's bitter lines on him and his vagaries and history?'"

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 259/260.

Title/Paratext] "In a letter of 29 [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"In a letter of 29 Dec. 1768, G[ray]. had complained to Mason that he had 'gone & told my Arcanum Arcanorum to that leaky Mortal Palgrave, who never conceals any thing he is trusted with' (Corresp iii 1052). Mitford and later editors have assumed that G. was referring to the present poem. If so, his anxiety was justified, for it was published without G.'s permission a few months later in the New Foundling Hospital for Wit (1769) iii 34-5, entitled 'Inscription for the Villa of a Decayed Statesman on the Sea Coast'. According to Joseph Cradock, the poem 'was at first denied to be [Gray's]', Literary Memoirs (1828) iv 225, and no one it may be assumed was more active in doing so than Horace Walpole. He wrote to Lady Ossory, 19 Aug. 1784 (Walpole Correspondence xxxiii 438): 'I was very sorry that he wrote them, and ever gave a copy of them. You may be sure I did not recommend their being printed in his works; nor were they.' Walpole had in fact written to Mason on 1 Dec. 1773 (Walpole Correspondence xxviii 118) for this purpose: 'I think you determined not to reprint the lines on Lord H[olland]. I hope it is now a resolution. He is in so deplorable a state, that they would aggravate the misery of his last hours, and you yourself would be censured... . As Gray too seems to have condemned all his own satirical works, that single one would not [?give] a high idea of his powers, though they were great in that walk; you and I know they were not inferior to his other styles.' Mason evidently agreed, but the poem could not be permanently suppressed. Lord Holland died on 1 July 1774. On 17 June 1775, soon after the publication of his Memoirs of G., Mason wrote to Walpole (Walpole Correspondence xxviii 209): 'A man who styles himself Philo-Gray of Salisbury has twitted me in the newspaper for not publishing a complete edition of Gray, because I have omitted the stanzas on a decayed statesman. You must take this sin of mine upon your own back. I suspect it is Almon in order to sell his own Foundling Hospital for Wit where those verses are printed.' The newspaper item to which Mason referred has not been found.
The text printed in the New Foundling Hospital in 1769 is closely related to a copy of the poem in the hand of G.'s friend Thomas Wharton (British Museum, Egerton MS 2400 f. 232), and it is likely that it was through one of the friends such as Wharton or Palgrave to whom it had been shown that the poem first reached the press. There is another copy in the papers of William Cole (British Museum, Add. MS 5821 f. 55), entitled 'On seeing the Seat of a decayed Nobleman in Kent'. Coles noted: 'These Verses on Lord Holland are said to have been composed by Mr Gray: Dr Glynn dictated them to me at Milton May 1. 1777.' (For Richard Glynn see p. 258 above.) A text with a number of distinctive variants was printed in two parts in the Gentleman's Mag. in Dec. 1777 and Jan. 1778 (xlvii 624 and xlviii 88), with the avowed purpose in the first instance of showing that G. had been 'a lover of his country, and an abhorrer of its intestine foes.' (Misprints in this text were corrected in the Gentleman's Mag. lii 39 and 75, in 1782.) This text was followed by John Nichols in his Select Collection of Poems (1781) vii 350-1, where, however, he attempts to supply the names omitted in l. 18 of the Gentleman's Mag. text and introduces one other variant. The poem was first collected by Stephen Jones in his edn of G. in 1799, where the poem is entitled 'Stanzas, suggested by a View, in 1766, of the Seat and Ruins of a deceased Nobleman, at Kingsgate, Kent'. Jones followed the Gentleman's Mag. text but in his revised 2nd edn in 1800, the poem was retitled 'Impromptu [etc.]' and a number of changes were made to the text: readings were adopted from the New Foundling Hospital and in several cases readings without earlier authority are introduced (including a new set of identifications in l. 18). This text was followed by Mitford and was invariably re-printed throughout the rest of the century. The text followed here is that of Wharton's copy, with variants from the New Foundling Hospital, Cole's copy, the Gentleman's Mag. (with which Nichols agrees except as noted) and the 2nd edn of Jones's Poems (1800)."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 260/261.

Title/Paratext] "Lord Holland had amassed a [...]" J. Reeves, 1973.

"Lord Holland had amassed a fortune in government service and had built a strange family seat at Margate, the grounds of which were cluttered with ruins and gave strange, contrived views."

The Complete English Poems of Thomas Gray. Edited with an Introduction and Notes by James Reeves. The Poetry Bookshelf series. London: Heinemann; New York: Barnes & Noble, 1973, 117.

Title/Paratext] "Written in 1768 and published, [...]" J. Heath-Stubbs, 1981.

"Written in 1768 and published, without Gray's permission, in The New Foundling Hospital for Wit, 1769. A text with variants was printed in two parts in The Gentleman's Magazine, Dec. 1777 and Jan. 1778. Henry Fox, 1705-74, created Baron Holland in 1763, had amassed a large fortune as Paymaster General, and served in Lord Bute's administration. His political career, notorious for bribery and corruption, ended in 1765, and after travelling in Italy he built his strange residence at Kingsgate, near Margate. It was a sham ruin, supposed to be an imitation of Cicero's villa at Baiae."

Thomas Gray: Selected Poems. Ed. by John Heath-Stubbs. Manchester: Carcanet New Press Ltd., 1981, 83.

Title/Paratext] "Henry, 1st Baron Holland's family [...]" Sherwood Sugden, 2006.

"Henry, 1st Baron Holland's family name was 'Fox'. His father, Sir Stephen Fox, had accompanied Charles II to Holland."

Sherwood Sugden <philomon1@netscape.net> (Managing Editor, The Monist). Contributed on Thu Apr 20 18:13:44 2006 GMT.

Add a note or query to this line


1 Old and abandoned by each venal friend, 1 Textual

1.5 each] "its   Cole." R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"its   Cole."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

Add a note or query to this line

2     Here H[olland] took the pious resolution 3 Textual

2.3 took] "Form'd. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)" [...]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Form'd. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 135.

2.3 took] "form'd N[ew] F[oundling], M[i]t[ford]." H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"form'd N[ew] F[oundling], M[i]t[ford]."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

2.3 took] "form'd   New Foundling Hospital, [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"form'd   New Foundling Hospital, Cole (with framed in margin), Jones."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

Add a note or query to this line

3 To smuggle some few years and strive to mend 1 Explanatory, 3 Textual

3.2 smuggle] "G[ray]. adds to the sense [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"G[ray]. adds to the sense of conveying in a stealthy manner, the connotation of smug, 'to smarten up'; cf. Candidate [1-]2 (p. 248 above)."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

3.3 some] "A few. - Gentleman's Magazine [...]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"A few. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 136.

3.3 some] "a M[i]t[ford]." H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"a M[i]t[ford]."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

3.3 some] "a   Gentleman's Mag., Jones." R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"a   Gentleman's Mag., Jones."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

Add a note or query to this line

4     A broken character and constitution.
5 On this congenial spot he fixed his choice; 1 Explanatory

5.3 congenial] "Used ironically in both the [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Used ironically in both the modern weakened sense of 'agreeable' and the stronger sense of 'kindred, suited in disposition to'."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

Add a note or query to this line

6     Earl Godwin trembled for his neighbouring sand; 4 Explanatory, 2 Textual

6.2 Godwin] "Goodwin N[ew] F[oundling], M[i]t[ford]." H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"Goodwin N[ew] F[oundling], M[i]t[ford]."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

6.2-7 Godwin ... sand;] "The Goodwin Sands at the [...]" H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"The Goodwin Sands at the entrance to the Straits of Dover, according to tradition, mark a sunken island, Lomea, which in the eleventh century belonged to the great Saxon Earl Godwin."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 229.

6.2 Godwin] "Goodwin   all other texts." R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Goodwin   all other texts."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

6.2-7 Godwin ... sand;] "The Goodwin Sands are a [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"The Goodwin Sands are a dangerous line of sandbanks about 6 miles off the Kent coast. According to tradition they are the remains of an island called Lomea, which belonged to Earl Godwine in the 11th century."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

6.2 Godwin] "a reference to the notorious [...]" J. Reeves, 1973.

"a reference to the notorious Goodwin Sands which had belonged to the Earl Godwine in the eleventh century."

The Complete English Poems of Thomas Gray. Edited with an Introduction and Notes by James Reeves. The Poetry Bookshelf series. London: Heinemann; New York: Barnes & Noble, 1973, 117.

6.2-7 Godwin ... sand;] "The Goodwin Sands were supposed [...]" J. Heath-Stubbs, 1981.

"The Goodwin Sands were supposed to have been an island which had belonged to Earl Godwin in the eleventh century."

Thomas Gray: Selected Poems. Ed. by John Heath-Stubbs. Manchester: Carcanet New Press Ltd., 1981, 83/84.

Add a note or query to this line

7 Here sea-gulls scream and cormorants rejoice, 1 Explanatory

7.1-6 Here ... rejoice,] "Cp. Spenser's description of the [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Cp. Spenser's description of the 'Rocke of vile Reproach', Faerie Queene II xii 8, 2-5: 'A daungerous and detestable place, / To which nor fish nor fowle did once approach, / But yelling Meawes, with Seagulls hoarse and base, / And Cormoyrants, with birds of rauenous race.'"

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

Add a note or query to this line

8     And mariners, though shipwrecked, dread to land. 3 Textual

8.5 dread] "Fear. - [Nicholls.]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Fear. - [Nicholls.]"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 136.

8.5 dread] "fear is recorded by M[i]t[ford] [...]" H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"fear is recorded by M[i]t[ford] as an earlier printed variant."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

8.5 dread] "fear   Gentleman's Mag." R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"fear   Gentleman's Mag."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

Add a note or query to this line

9 Here reign the blustering North and blighting East, 1 Explanatory, 2 Textual

9.1-8 Here ... East,] "Cp. Pope, Rape of the [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Cp. Pope, Rape of the Lock iv 19-20: 'No cheerful Breeze this sullen Region knows, / The dreaded East is all the Wind that blows.'"

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

9.2 reign] "reigns N[ew] F[oundling]." H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"reigns N[ew] F[oundling]."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

9.2 reign] "reigns   New Foundling Hospital, [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"reigns   New Foundling Hospital, Gentleman's Mag.; reign'd   Cole."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

Add a note or query to this line

10     No tree is heard to whisper, bird to sing:
11 Yet nature cannot furnish out the feast, 1 Explanatory, 3 Textual

11.1-7 Yet ... feast,] "Cp. 'Your own provisions furnish [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Cp. 'Your own provisions furnish out our Feasts', Dryden, Prologue to Wit without Money 11, after an account of 'shipwrack't Passengers' coming ashore."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

11.3 cannot] "Could. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)" [...]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Could. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 136.

11.3 cannot] "could not M[i]t[ford]." H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"could not M[i]t[ford]."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

11.3 cannot] "could not   Gentleman's Mag., R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"could not   Gentleman's Mag., Jones."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

Add a note or query to this line

12     Art he invokes new horrors still to bring. 3 Textual

12.5 horrors] "Terrors. - [Nicholls.]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Terrors. - [Nicholls.]"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 136.

12.5 horrors] "terrors   Gentleman's Mag." R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"terrors   Gentleman's Mag."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

12.6 still] "written above a deleted word, [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"written above a deleted word, perhaps here, in Cole."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

Add a note or query to this line

13 Now mouldering fanes and battlements arise, 1 Explanatory, 3 Textual

13.1 Now] "Here. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)" [...]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Here. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 136.

13.1 Now] "Here M[i]t[ford]." H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"Here M[i]t[ford]."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

13.1 Now] "Here   Jones." R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Here   Jones."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

13.1 - 16.5 Now ... all.] "This quatrain repeatedly echoes the [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"This quatrain repeatedly echoes the opening of Pope's To Mr Addison, a description of the ruins of ancient Rome, especially 3, 7, 9, 11: 'With nodding arches, broken temples spread! / ... / Huge Theatres, that now unpeopled Woods / ... / Fanes, which admiring Gods with pride survey / ... / Some felt the silent stroke of mould'ring age.'"

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

Add a note or query to this line

14     Arches and turrets nodding to their fall, 2 Explanatory, 3 Textual

13.1 - 16.5 Now ... all.] "This quatrain repeatedly echoes the [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"This quatrain repeatedly echoes the opening of Pope's To Mr Addison, a description of the ruins of ancient Rome, especially 3, 7, 9, 11: 'With nodding arches, broken temples spread! / ... / Huge Theatres, that now unpeopled Woods / ... / Fanes, which admiring Gods with pride survey / ... / Some felt the silent stroke of mould'ring age.'"

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

14.1-3 Arches ... turrets] "Turrets and arches. - Gentleman's [...]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Turrets and arches. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 136.

14.1-3 Arches ... turrets] "Turrets and arches M[i]t[ford]." H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"Turrets and arches M[i]t[ford]."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

14.1-3 Arches ... turrets] "Turrets and arches   Gentleman's [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Turrets and arches   Gentleman's Mag., Jones."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 263.

14.4-7 nodding ... fall,] "Cp. 'the Wall / Of [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Cp. 'the Wall / Of tottering Troy, now nodding to her fall', Dryden, Ovid's Metamorphoses xii 774-5; 'Or some old temple nodding to its fall', Pope, Essay on Man iv 129."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 263.

Add a note or query to this line

15 Unpeopled palaces delude his eyes, 1 Explanatory, 3 Textual

13.1 - 16.5 Now ... all.] "This quatrain repeatedly echoes the [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"This quatrain repeatedly echoes the opening of Pope's To Mr Addison, a description of the ruins of ancient Rome, especially 3, 7, 9, 11: 'With nodding arches, broken temples spread! / ... / Huge Theatres, that now unpeopled Woods / ... / Fanes, which admiring Gods with pride survey / ... / Some felt the silent stroke of mould'ring age.'"

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

15.2-4 palaces ... his] "Monast'ries ... our. - Gentleman's [...]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Monast'ries ... our. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 136.

15.2-4 palaces ... his] "monast'ries delude our M[i]t[ford]." H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"monast'ries delude our M[i]t[ford]."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

15.2-4 palaces ... his] "monasteries ... our   Gentleman's [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"monasteries ... our   Gentleman's Mag., Jones."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 263.

Add a note or query to this line

16     And mimic desolation covers all. 1 Explanatory

13.1 - 16.5 Now ... all.] "This quatrain repeatedly echoes the [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"This quatrain repeatedly echoes the opening of Pope's To Mr Addison, a description of the ruins of ancient Rome, especially 3, 7, 9, 11: 'With nodding arches, broken temples spread! / ... / Huge Theatres, that now unpeopled Woods / ... / Fanes, which admiring Gods with pride survey / ... / Some felt the silent stroke of mould'ring age.'"

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 262.

Add a note or query to this line

17 'Ah', said the sighing peer, 'had Bute been true, 5 Explanatory

17.1 - 18.6 'Ah', ... vain,] "See the verses by Holland [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"See the verses by Holland quoted in the headnote."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 263.

17.1 - 24.8 'Ah', ... Paul's.'] "In the final two quatrains [...]" Alexander Huber, 2013.

"In the final two quatrains of the poem, Gray "unveils" Holland's master plan in the satiric culmination of the poem. Spoken by Holland himself, the lines tie together many of the tropes introduced earlier in the poem: retirement to the country (l. 3), a virtuous lifestyle as opposed to the corruptions of the city (l. 2), echoes of the fall of civilizations (Cicero), and the treacherous landscape that surrounds Holland's estate (ll. 5-16). Of course, Holland's retirement is not motivated by noble designs, but is instead potentially a forced move possibly even to escape punishment (ll. 3-4). The final lines of the poem give a satiric insight into Holland's design that was thwarted by the betrayal of his former allies, namely the destruction of London itself (metaphorically spoken), possibly causing the downfall of another great civilization after Greece and Rome. Gray draws on Pope (l. 20-21) to illustrate the perverted ("beautified by fire") destructive power of corrupt individuals for state and society. In this apocalyptic vision, sacred places become the habitat of wild animals. Gray very likely deliberately introduced Holland's family surname Fox in the last line of the poem to heighten the moral outrage against his actions. The power of Gray's satire comes form the identification of the destructive power of moral corruption with historical personalities as their agents, in this case with Holland."

Alexander Huber <huber@thomasgray.org> (University of Oxford), URL: http://www.thomasgray.org/. Contributed on Mon Feb 4 14:41:27 2013 GMT.

17.7 Bute] "Lord Bute was Prime Minister, [...]" J. Bradshaw, 1891.

"Lord Bute was Prime Minister, 1762-63. Gray got his name suggested to Bute in 1762 for the Professorship of Modern History, but was not successful."

The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891, 266.

17.7 Bute] "John Stuart (1713-92), third Earl [...]" H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"John Stuart (1713-92), third Earl of Bute, Secretary of State and Prime Minister. Holland was in his cabinet."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 229.

17.7 Bute] "John Stuart (1713-92), 3rd Earl [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"John Stuart (1713-92), 3rd Earl of Bute, was in effect Prime Minister from the accession of George III in 1760 until his resignation in 1763. Holland had been a member of his Cabinet and, as Leader of the House of Commons, had served Bute significantly by securing an easy passage for the Peace of Paris in 1763."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 263.

Add a note or query to this line

18     Nor Shelburne's, Rigby's, Calcraft's friendship vain, 10 Explanatory, 6 Textual

17.1 - 18.6 'Ah', ... vain,] "See the verses by Holland [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"See the verses by Holland quoted in the headnote."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 263.

17.1 - 24.8 'Ah', ... Paul's.'] "In the final two quatrains [...]" Alexander Huber, 2013.

"In the final two quatrains of the poem, Gray "unveils" Holland's master plan in the satiric culmination of the poem. Spoken by Holland himself, the lines tie together many of the tropes introduced earlier in the poem: retirement to the country (l. 3), a virtuous lifestyle as opposed to the corruptions of the city (l. 2), echoes of the fall of civilizations (Cicero), and the treacherous landscape that surrounds Holland's estate (ll. 5-16). Of course, Holland's retirement is not motivated by noble designs, but is instead potentially a forced move possibly even to escape punishment (ll. 3-4). The final lines of the poem give a satiric insight into Holland's design that was thwarted by the betrayal of his former allies, namely the destruction of London itself (metaphorically spoken), possibly causing the downfall of another great civilization after Greece and Rome. Gray draws on Pope (l. 20-21) to illustrate the perverted ("beautified by fire") destructive power of corrupt individuals for state and society. In this apocalyptic vision, sacred places become the habitat of wild animals. Gray very likely deliberately introduced Holland's family surname Fox in the last line of the poem to heighten the moral outrage against his actions. The power of Gray's satire comes form the identification of the destructive power of moral corruption with historical personalities as their agents, in this case with Holland."

Alexander Huber <huber@thomasgray.org> (University of Oxford), URL: http://www.thomasgray.org/. Contributed on Mon Feb 4 14:41:27 2013 GMT.

18.1-6 Nor ... vain,] "Nor C---'s, nor B---d's promises [...]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Nor C---'s, nor B---d's promises been vain. - [Nicholls.]"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 136.

18.1-6 Nor ... vain,] "These names were supplied by [...]" J. Heath-Stubbs, 1981.

"These names were supplied by John Nichols when he reprinted the poem in his Select Collection of Poems, 1781, and by Stephen Jones in his edition of Gray, 1799, for spaces left blank in The Gentleman's Magazine text. While serving in Lord Bute's cabinet, Fox had quarrelled with the Earl of Shelburne (1737-1805). Richard Rigby (1722-88) abandoned Holland for Bedford. John Calcraft (1726-72), originally a protege of Holland, later abandoned him for Pitt."

Thomas Gray: Selected Poems. Ed. by John Heath-Stubbs. Manchester: Carcanet New Press Ltd., 1981, 84.

18.2-4 Shelburne's, ... Calcraft's] "Mungo's, Rigby's, Bradshaw's. - Gentleman's [...]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Mungo's, Rigby's, Bradshaw's. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 136.

18.2-4 Shelburne's, ... Calcraft's] "In Upcott's edition the names [...]" J. Bradshaw, 1891.

"In Upcott's edition the names given are Mansfield, Rigby, Bedford. In the Egerton MSS. they are Shelburne, Rigby, Calcraft. For all these see the Index to the "Letters of Junius." Rigby was Paymaster of the British Forces. Thomas Bradshaw was Secretary to the Duke of Grafton, and afterwards a Lord of the Admiralty."

The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891, 266.

18.2-4 Shelburne's, ... Calcraft's] "M---'s, R---'s, B---'s M[i]t[ford], where [...]" H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"M---'s, R---'s, B---'s M[i]t[ford], where the explanation given in a note is Mungo's, Rigby's, Bradshaw's. Mt also notes another early printed variant: Nor C---'s, nor B---d's promises been vain."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

18.2 Shelburne's,] "William Petty Fitzmaurice (1737-1805), second [...]" H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"William Petty Fitzmaurice (1737-1805), second Earl of Shelburne, first Marquis of Lansdowne, later First Lord of the Treasury, was originally a protege of Bute."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 229.

18.2-6 Shelburne's, ... vain,] "Shelburne's, Calcraft's, Rigby's friendship vain [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Shelburne's, Calcraft's, Rigby's friendship vain   New Foundling Hospital; Calcraft's, Shelburne's, Rigby's Friendship vain   Cole; ---, ---, ---'s friendship vain   Gentleman's Mag.; G---'s, nor B---d's promises been vain   Nichols; M---'s, R---'s, B---'s friendship vain   Jones 1800, having printed dashes in 1799. Nichols and Jones, faced with the dashes in the Gentleman's Mag., evidently felt free to fill them as they pleased. Mitford, following Jones, explained the names as Mungo, Rigby and Bradshaw, comparing Mason, Heroic Epistle (1773) 95, where these names also occur. Jones no doubt found them there, but this is no argument for adopting them; and the identification in Wharton, New Foundling Hospital and Cole are preferable, especially in the light of Holland's verses, where these names are mentioned."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 263.

18.2 Shelburne's,] "William Petty (1737-1805), 2nd Earl [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"William Petty (1737-1805), 2nd Earl of Shelburne, President of the Board of Trade 1763, and Secretary of State under Pitt 1766, informed Bute that Holland would resign his post as Paymaster-General when he was raised to the Lords. An unpleasant quarrel took place when Holland refused to do this, alleging that Shelburne was guilty of fraud and deception."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 263.

18.2-4 Shelburne's, ... Calcraft's] "Holland himself mentions these former [...]" Alexander Huber, 2000.

"Holland himself mentions these former political allies in his poem Lord Holland returning from Italy (1767), which is parodied here by Gray."

Alexander Huber <huber@thomasgray.org> (SUB Göttingen), URL: http://www.thomasgray.org/. Contributed on Sat Oct 28 22:50:34 2000 GMT.

18.3 Rigby's,] "Richard Rigby (1722-88), Vice-Treasurer of [...]" H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"Richard Rigby (1722-88), Vice-Treasurer of Ireland and then Paymaster of the Forces, was a notorious politician who first supported and later deserted Holland."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 229.

18.3 Rigby's,] "Richard Rigby (1722-88) was the [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Richard Rigby (1722-88) was the manager of the Duke of Bedford's parliamentary group, Vice-Treasurer for Ireland 1765, and Paymaster of the Forces 1768. He died extremely rich. He originally attached himself to Holland, before abandoning him for Bedford."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 263.

18.4 Calcraft's] "Calcrofts Wh[arton MS.]." H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"Calcrofts Wh[arton MS.]."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

18.4 Calcraft's] "John Calcraft (1726-72) was another [...]" H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"John Calcraft (1726-72) was another politician of unsavoury repute, who, after being a follower of Holland, turned against him."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 229.

18.4 Calcraft's] "John Calcraft (1726-72) had been [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"John Calcraft (1726-72) had been appointed a regimental agent in the Pay Office by Holland when he was Paymaster and had made a fortune in the post. Eventually he deserted Holland for Pitt. G[ray]. made two notes on Calcraft in his copy of Churchill's Poems, described by Gosse, Trans. Royal Soc. Lit. xxxvi (1918) 171-3. Against Churchill's Epistle to Hogarth 205, he wrote 'Calcraft, he quarrelld with Lord Holland, whose creature, & (as was said) natural son he was'; similarly G. annotated The Conference 294; 'Mr Calcraft, agent to a hundred Regiments, a Creature of Lord Holland's'."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 263.

Add a note or query to this line

19 Far other scenes than these had blessed our view 2 Explanatory, 7 Textual

17.1 - 24.8 'Ah', ... Paul's.'] "In the final two quatrains [...]" Alexander Huber, 2013.

"In the final two quatrains of the poem, Gray "unveils" Holland's master plan in the satiric culmination of the poem. Spoken by Holland himself, the lines tie together many of the tropes introduced earlier in the poem: retirement to the country (l. 3), a virtuous lifestyle as opposed to the corruptions of the city (l. 2), echoes of the fall of civilizations (Cicero), and the treacherous landscape that surrounds Holland's estate (ll. 5-16). Of course, Holland's retirement is not motivated by noble designs, but is instead potentially a forced move possibly even to escape punishment (ll. 3-4). The final lines of the poem give a satiric insight into Holland's design that was thwarted by the betrayal of his former allies, namely the destruction of London itself (metaphorically spoken), possibly causing the downfall of another great civilization after Greece and Rome. Gray draws on Pope (l. 20-21) to illustrate the perverted ("beautified by fire") destructive power of corrupt individuals for state and society. In this apocalyptic vision, sacred places become the habitat of wild animals. Gray very likely deliberately introduced Holland's family surname Fox in the last line of the poem to heighten the moral outrage against his actions. The power of Gray's satire comes form the identification of the destructive power of moral corruption with historical personalities as their agents, in this case with Holland."

Alexander Huber <huber@thomasgray.org> (University of Oxford), URL: http://www.thomasgray.org/. Contributed on Mon Feb 4 14:41:27 2013 GMT.

19.1-3 Far ... scenes] "Cp. 'Far other dreams my [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Cp. 'Far other dreams my erring soul employ', Pope, Eloisa to Abelard 223; 'Far other scenes and palaces arise,' Thomson, Liberty iii 550."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

19.2 other] "Better. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)" [...]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Better. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 136.

19.2 other] "better M[i]t[ford]." H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"better M[i]t[ford]."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

19.2 other] "better   Jones." R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"better   Jones."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

19.5 these] "this   Gentleman's Mag." R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"this   Gentleman's Mag."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

19.7-9 blessed ... view] "Grac'd our view. - [Nicholls.]" [...]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Grac'd our view. - [Nicholls.]"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 136.

19.7 blessed] "crown'd N[ew] F[oundling]." H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"crown'd N[ew] F[oundling]."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

19.7 blessed] "crown'd   New Foundling Hospital, [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"crown'd   New Foundling Hospital, Cole; grac'd   Gentleman's Mag."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

Add a note or query to this line

20     And realised the ruins that we feign. 2 Explanatory, 4 Textual

17.1 - 24.8 'Ah', ... Paul's.'] "In the final two quatrains [...]" Alexander Huber, 2013.

"In the final two quatrains of the poem, Gray "unveils" Holland's master plan in the satiric culmination of the poem. Spoken by Holland himself, the lines tie together many of the tropes introduced earlier in the poem: retirement to the country (l. 3), a virtuous lifestyle as opposed to the corruptions of the city (l. 2), echoes of the fall of civilizations (Cicero), and the treacherous landscape that surrounds Holland's estate (ll. 5-16). Of course, Holland's retirement is not motivated by noble designs, but is instead potentially a forced move possibly even to escape punishment (ll. 3-4). The final lines of the poem give a satiric insight into Holland's design that was thwarted by the betrayal of his former allies, namely the destruction of London itself (metaphorically spoken), possibly causing the downfall of another great civilization after Greece and Rome. Gray draws on Pope (l. 20-21) to illustrate the perverted ("beautified by fire") destructive power of corrupt individuals for state and society. In this apocalyptic vision, sacred places become the habitat of wild animals. Gray very likely deliberately introduced Holland's family surname Fox in the last line of the poem to heighten the moral outrage against his actions. The power of Gray's satire comes form the identification of the destructive power of moral corruption with historical personalities as their agents, in this case with Holland."

Alexander Huber <huber@thomasgray.org> (University of Oxford), URL: http://www.thomasgray.org/. Contributed on Mon Feb 4 14:41:27 2013 GMT.

20.2 realised] "Brought into actual being." R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Brought into actual being."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

20.4-5 ruins that] "Horrors which. - [Nicholls.]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Horrors which. - [Nicholls.]"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 136.

20.4-5 ruins that] "Beauties which. - Gentleman's Magazine [...]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Beauties which. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 136.

20.4-5 ruins that] "beauties which M[i]t[ford]." H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"beauties which M[i]t[ford]."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

20.4-5 ruins that] "glories which   Gentleman's Mag.; R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"glories which   Gentleman's Mag.; horrors which   Nichols; beauties which   Cole, Jones."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

Add a note or query to this line

21 Purged by the sword and beautified by fire, 3 Explanatory, 3 Textual

17.1 - 24.8 'Ah', ... Paul's.'] "In the final two quatrains [...]" Alexander Huber, 2013.

"In the final two quatrains of the poem, Gray "unveils" Holland's master plan in the satiric culmination of the poem. Spoken by Holland himself, the lines tie together many of the tropes introduced earlier in the poem: retirement to the country (l. 3), a virtuous lifestyle as opposed to the corruptions of the city (l. 2), echoes of the fall of civilizations (Cicero), and the treacherous landscape that surrounds Holland's estate (ll. 5-16). Of course, Holland's retirement is not motivated by noble designs, but is instead potentially a forced move possibly even to escape punishment (ll. 3-4). The final lines of the poem give a satiric insight into Holland's design that was thwarted by the betrayal of his former allies, namely the destruction of London itself (metaphorically spoken), possibly causing the downfall of another great civilization after Greece and Rome. Gray draws on Pope (l. 20-21) to illustrate the perverted ("beautified by fire") destructive power of corrupt individuals for state and society. In this apocalyptic vision, sacred places become the habitat of wild animals. Gray very likely deliberately introduced Holland's family surname Fox in the last line of the poem to heighten the moral outrage against his actions. The power of Gray's satire comes form the identification of the destructive power of moral corruption with historical personalities as their agents, in this case with Holland."

Alexander Huber <huber@thomasgray.org> (University of Oxford), URL: http://www.thomasgray.org/. Contributed on Mon Feb 4 14:41:27 2013 GMT.

21.1 - 24.8 Purged ... Paul's.'] "Dryden, Annus Mirabilis 1101-4: The [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Dryden, Annus Mirabilis 1101-4:

The dareing flames peep't in and saw from far,
    The awful beauties of the Sacred Quire:
But, since it was prophan'd by Civil War,
    Heav'n thought it fit to have it purg'd by fire."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

21.6 beautified] "Purified. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)" [...]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Purified. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 137.

21.6 beautified] "purified M[i]t[ford]." H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"purified M[i]t[ford]."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

21.6 beautified] "purify'd   Gentleman's Mag., Jones, [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"purify'd   Gentleman's Mag., Jones, and also as an alternative in the margin of Cole."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

21.6-8 beautified ... fire,] "Cf. 'Go, purified by flames [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Cf. 'Go, purified by flames ascend the sky', Pope, Dunciad i 227."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

Add a note or query to this line

22     Then had we seen proud London's hated walls: 3 Explanatory

17.1 - 24.8 'Ah', ... Paul's.'] "In the final two quatrains [...]" Alexander Huber, 2013.

"In the final two quatrains of the poem, Gray "unveils" Holland's master plan in the satiric culmination of the poem. Spoken by Holland himself, the lines tie together many of the tropes introduced earlier in the poem: retirement to the country (l. 3), a virtuous lifestyle as opposed to the corruptions of the city (l. 2), echoes of the fall of civilizations (Cicero), and the treacherous landscape that surrounds Holland's estate (ll. 5-16). Of course, Holland's retirement is not motivated by noble designs, but is instead potentially a forced move possibly even to escape punishment (ll. 3-4). The final lines of the poem give a satiric insight into Holland's design that was thwarted by the betrayal of his former allies, namely the destruction of London itself (metaphorically spoken), possibly causing the downfall of another great civilization after Greece and Rome. Gray draws on Pope (l. 20-21) to illustrate the perverted ("beautified by fire") destructive power of corrupt individuals for state and society. In this apocalyptic vision, sacred places become the habitat of wild animals. Gray very likely deliberately introduced Holland's family surname Fox in the last line of the poem to heighten the moral outrage against his actions. The power of Gray's satire comes form the identification of the destructive power of moral corruption with historical personalities as their agents, in this case with Holland."

Alexander Huber <huber@thomasgray.org> (University of Oxford), URL: http://www.thomasgray.org/. Contributed on Mon Feb 4 14:41:27 2013 GMT.

21.1 - 24.8 Purged ... Paul's.'] "Dryden, Annus Mirabilis 1101-4: The [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Dryden, Annus Mirabilis 1101-4:

The dareing flames peep't in and saw from far,
    The awful beauties of the Sacred Quire:
But, since it was prophan'd by Civil War,
    Heav'n thought it fit to have it purg'd by fire."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

22.6-8 London's ... walls:] "Holland was particularly unpopular in [...]" H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"Holland was particularly unpopular in London, where a petition later brought against several Ministers singled him out as 'the public defaulter of unaccounted millions'."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 229.

Add a note or query to this line

23 Owls might have hooted in St Peter's choir, 4 Explanatory, 4 Textual

17.1 - 24.8 'Ah', ... Paul's.'] "In the final two quatrains [...]" Alexander Huber, 2013.

"In the final two quatrains of the poem, Gray "unveils" Holland's master plan in the satiric culmination of the poem. Spoken by Holland himself, the lines tie together many of the tropes introduced earlier in the poem: retirement to the country (l. 3), a virtuous lifestyle as opposed to the corruptions of the city (l. 2), echoes of the fall of civilizations (Cicero), and the treacherous landscape that surrounds Holland's estate (ll. 5-16). Of course, Holland's retirement is not motivated by noble designs, but is instead potentially a forced move possibly even to escape punishment (ll. 3-4). The final lines of the poem give a satiric insight into Holland's design that was thwarted by the betrayal of his former allies, namely the destruction of London itself (metaphorically spoken), possibly causing the downfall of another great civilization after Greece and Rome. Gray draws on Pope (l. 20-21) to illustrate the perverted ("beautified by fire") destructive power of corrupt individuals for state and society. In this apocalyptic vision, sacred places become the habitat of wild animals. Gray very likely deliberately introduced Holland's family surname Fox in the last line of the poem to heighten the moral outrage against his actions. The power of Gray's satire comes form the identification of the destructive power of moral corruption with historical personalities as their agents, in this case with Holland."

Alexander Huber <huber@thomasgray.org> (University of Oxford), URL: http://www.thomasgray.org/. Contributed on Mon Feb 4 14:41:27 2013 GMT.

21.1 - 24.8 Purged ... Paul's.'] "Dryden, Annus Mirabilis 1101-4: The [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Dryden, Annus Mirabilis 1101-4:

The dareing flames peep't in and saw from far,
    The awful beauties of the Sacred Quire:
But, since it was prophan'd by Civil War,
    Heav'n thought it fit to have it purg'd by fire."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

23.1 - 24.8 Owls ... Paul's.'] "Cp. Isaiah xiii 21, xxxiv [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Cp. Isaiah xiii 21, xxxiv 15 (quoted in part by G[ray]. in a letter to West in Dec. 1736, Corresp i 56): 'But the wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there. And the wild beasts of the island shall cry in their desolate houses, and dragons in their pleasant palaces ... There shall the great owl make her nest, and lay, and hatch, and gather under her shadow; there shall the vultures also be gathered, every one with her mate.' Cp. also Virgil, Georgics i 470-1: obscenaeque canes importunaeque volucres / signa dabant (ill-boding dogs and ominous birds gave their tokens); Georgics i 485-6: altae / per noctem resonare lupis ululantibus urbes (or lofty cities to echo all the night with the howl of wolves); Horace, Epodes xvi 19-20: habitandaque fana / apris reliquit et rapacibus lupis (and left their shrines to be the dwelling-place of boars and ravening wolves); and Pope, Windsor Forest 70-1: 'The Fox obscene to gaping Tombs retires, / And savage Howlings fill the sacred Quires.'"

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

23.2 might] "Would. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)" [...]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Would. - Gentleman's Magazine (1782)"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 137.

23.2 might] "Should. - [Nicholls]" E. Gosse, 1884.

"Should. - [Nicholls]"

The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i, 137.

23.2 might] "would M[i]t[ford]." H.W. Starr/J.R. Hendrickson, 1966.

"would M[i]t[ford]."

The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966, 53.

23.2 might] "should   Gentlemen's Mag.; would [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"should   Gentlemen's Mag.; would   Jones."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

23.6-7 St Peter's] "Westminster Abbey." R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Westminster Abbey."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

Add a note or query to this line

24     And foxes stunk and littered in St Paul's.' 3 Explanatory

17.1 - 24.8 'Ah', ... Paul's.'] "In the final two quatrains [...]" Alexander Huber, 2013.

"In the final two quatrains of the poem, Gray "unveils" Holland's master plan in the satiric culmination of the poem. Spoken by Holland himself, the lines tie together many of the tropes introduced earlier in the poem: retirement to the country (l. 3), a virtuous lifestyle as opposed to the corruptions of the city (l. 2), echoes of the fall of civilizations (Cicero), and the treacherous landscape that surrounds Holland's estate (ll. 5-16). Of course, Holland's retirement is not motivated by noble designs, but is instead potentially a forced move possibly even to escape punishment (ll. 3-4). The final lines of the poem give a satiric insight into Holland's design that was thwarted by the betrayal of his former allies, namely the destruction of London itself (metaphorically spoken), possibly causing the downfall of another great civilization after Greece and Rome. Gray draws on Pope (l. 20-21) to illustrate the perverted ("beautified by fire") destructive power of corrupt individuals for state and society. In this apocalyptic vision, sacred places become the habitat of wild animals. Gray very likely deliberately introduced Holland's family surname Fox in the last line of the poem to heighten the moral outrage against his actions. The power of Gray's satire comes form the identification of the destructive power of moral corruption with historical personalities as their agents, in this case with Holland."

Alexander Huber <huber@thomasgray.org> (University of Oxford), URL: http://www.thomasgray.org/. Contributed on Mon Feb 4 14:41:27 2013 GMT.

21.1 - 24.8 Purged ... Paul's.'] "Dryden, Annus Mirabilis 1101-4: The [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Dryden, Annus Mirabilis 1101-4:

The dareing flames peep't in and saw from far,
    The awful beauties of the Sacred Quire:
But, since it was prophan'd by Civil War,
    Heav'n thought it fit to have it purg'd by fire."

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

23.1 - 24.8 Owls ... Paul's.'] "Cp. Isaiah xiii 21, xxxiv [...]" R. Lonsdale, 1969.

"Cp. Isaiah xiii 21, xxxiv 15 (quoted in part by G[ray]. in a letter to West in Dec. 1736, Corresp i 56): 'But the wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there. And the wild beasts of the island shall cry in their desolate houses, and dragons in their pleasant palaces ... There shall the great owl make her nest, and lay, and hatch, and gather under her shadow; there shall the vultures also be gathered, every one with her mate.' Cp. also Virgil, Georgics i 470-1: obscenaeque canes importunaeque volucres / signa dabant (ill-boding dogs and ominous birds gave their tokens); Georgics i 485-6: altae / per noctem resonare lupis ululantibus urbes (or lofty cities to echo all the night with the howl of wolves); Horace, Epodes xvi 19-20: habitandaque fana / apris reliquit et rapacibus lupis (and left their shrines to be the dwelling-place of boars and ravening wolves); and Pope, Windsor Forest 70-1: 'The Fox obscene to gaping Tombs retires, / And savage Howlings fill the sacred Quires.'"

The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969, 264.

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Works cited

  • The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891.
  • The Works of Thomas Gray: In Prose and Verse. Ed. by Edmund Gosse, in four vols. London: MacMillan and Co., 1884, vol. i.
  • Thomas Gray: Selected Poems. Ed. by John Heath-Stubbs. Manchester: Carcanet New Press Ltd., 1981.
  • The Poems of Thomas Gray, William Collins, Oliver Goldsmith. Edited by Roger Lonsdale. Longman Annotated English Poets Series. London and Harlow: Longmans, 1969.
  • The Poems of Gray and Collins. Edited by Austin Lane Poole. Revised by Leonard Whibley. Third edition. Oxford editions of standard authors series. London: Oxford UP, 1937, reprinted 1950 [1st ed. 1919].
  • The Complete English Poems of Thomas Gray. Edited with an Introduction and Notes by James Reeves. The Poetry Bookshelf series. London: Heinemann; New York: Barnes & Noble, 1973.
  • The Complete Poems of Thomas Gray: English, Latin and Greek. Edited by Herbert W. Starr and J. R. Hendrickson. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1966.

Spelling has been modernized throughout, except in case of conscious archaisms. Contractions, italics and initial capitalization have been largely eliminated, except where of real import. Obvious errors have been silently corrected, punctuation has been lightly modernized. The editor would like to express his gratitude to the library staff of the Göttingen State and University Library (SUB Göttingen) for their invaluable assistance.

About this text

  • Composition: 1768
  • Publication: 1769
  • Base text: Wharton MS
  • Metre: iambic pentameter
  • Rhyme scheme: abab
  • Stanza: heroic stanza
  • Genre: ode
  • Finding Aid: MS witnesses
  • Notes/Queries: 97
  • Source: TEI/XML
  • Visualization: Poem Viewer

Editions in the Digital Library

  • 1798: The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray. London, 1798.
  • 1799: The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray. London, [1799].
  • 1799: The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray, LL.B. London, 1799.
  • 1800: The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray, LL.B. London, 1800.
  • 1816: The Works of Thomas Gray, Vol. I. Ed. John Mitford. London, 1816.
  • 1826: The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray. London, 1826.
  • 1836: The Works of Thomas Gray, Volume I. Ed. John Mitford. London, 1836.