The Old Bridge at Florence
An old bridge over the Arno speaks of its builder, Taddeo Gaddi, and its survival while the river overthrew other bridges. It recalls the Medici’s expulsion from Florence and the wars of Ghibelline and Guelf, then takes pride in the city’s jewelry and in Michael Angelo having leaned on it.
By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow · Genre: Sonnet, Dramatic Monologue · 155 words
First lines
Taddeo Gaddi built me. I am old, / Five centuries old. I plant my foot of stone / Upon the Arno, as St. Michael's own / Was planted on the dragon. Fold by fold / Beneath me as it struggles. I behold / Its glistening scales. Twice hath it overthrown / My kindred and companions. Me alone / It moveth not, but is by me controlled, / I can remember when the Medici / Were driven from Florence; longer still ago / The final wars of Ghibelline and Guelf. / Florence adorns me with her jewelry; / And when I think that Michael Angelo / Hath leaned on me, I glory in myself.
What this Textopian page supports
The Old Bridge at Florence is listed on Textopian as a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, dated Date unknown.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Poem
- Author: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
- Date: Date unknown
- Language: English
- Genres: Sonnet, Dramatic Monologue
- Length: 155 words
- Structure: 1 section, 1 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)
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- Work identity for The Old Bridge at Florence by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
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Genres
- Sonnet — Fourteen rhymed lines move from the bridge’s endurance against the Arno to its memories and final expression of pride.
- Dramatic Monologue — The bridge speaks throughout in the first person, naming its builder, recalling conflicts, and boasting of its distinguished visitor.
Tags
bridges · Arno · floods · personification · civic memory · sonnets