Epitaph On An Army of Mercenaries

Epitaph On An Army of Mercenaries by A E Housman

 These, in the day when heaven was falling,
The hour when earth's foundations fled,
Followed their mercenary calling
And took their wages and are dead.

Their shoulders held the sky suspended;
They stood, and earth's foundations stay;
What God abandoned, these defended,
And saved the sum of things for pay.

Form: Elegy Comments

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Book: Diverse Voices: The Poetry of Human Rights and the Pursuit of Peace