Hymn of the Moravian Nuns of Bethlehem
At the consecration of Pulaski's banner, nuns sing a blessing, urge its bearer to guard it until their homes are free, and plead for mercy toward a defeated warrior. They promise the flag as his shroud if he dies; the closing lines state that it became his cloak and shroud.
By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow · Genre: War Poetry, Religious Poetry, Narrative Poetry · 431 words
First lines
At the Consecration of Pulaski's Banner.
When the dying flame of day / Through the chancel shot its ray, / Far the glimmering tapers shed / Faint light on the cowled head; / And the censer burning swung, / Where, before the altar, hung / The crimson banner, that with prayer / Had been consecrated there. / And the nuns' sweet hymn was heard the while, / Sung low, in the dim, mysterious aisle.
Genres
- War Poetry — The nuns address a banner-bearing warrior about battle, the freedom of their homes, mercy toward the defeated, and a soldier's burial.
- Religious Poetry — A hymn sung before an altar accompanies a consecrated banner, invokes God's protection, and appeals to holy vows and prayer.
- Narrative Poetry — Rhymed verse frames the nuns' song with the banner's consecration and the warrior's acceptance of the flag that becomes his shroud.
Tags
battle banner · nuns · consecration · mercy · war · soldier's burial
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Hymn of the Moravian Nuns of Bethlehem is listed on Textopian as a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, dated Date unknown.
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- Work type: Poem
- Author: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
- Date: Date unknown
- Language: English
- Genres: War Poetry, Religious Poetry, Narrative Poetry
- Length: 431 words
- Structure: 1 section, 7 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Easy (6th Grade)
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