Andrew Marvell ' Horatian Ode' -written 1650

Andrew Marvell 'Horation Ode  upon Cromwell's Return from Ireland '
                     


                     Returning to Andrew Marvell ( 31st March 1621- 16th August 1678), thought that would be helpful to look at 'An Horation Ode upon Cromwell's Return from Ireland' , written in 1650, but can find no record of it ever being published until after the poet's death.

                                           Picture of Andrew Marvell courtesy Wikipedia


                    There are many fascinating aspects to this poem. The use of Rome as a major political and cultural reference point during the Commonwealth for one. Moreover, Cromwell's Irish campaign from 15th August 1649- 26th May 1650 evokes such fierce reactions. In fact upon his return, Cromwell was just about to invade Scotland, which led to a final break between Cromwell and Sir Thomas Fairfax.

 But what is most striking is the poem's portrayal of Cromwell as some dynamic force of nature, somehow above moral and ethical judgement. Marvell has become most famous for poems about gardens, along with 'To His Coy Mistress' : In our current age, where poets are almost expected to be 'anti-war' , this poem is strangely detached from the Irish campaign's  impact in humanitarian terms. If Marvell can be excused for such indifference-the poem is arguably a strange forerunner of Romanticism:

THE forward youth that would appear,
Must now forsake his Muses dear,
Nor in the shadows sing
His numbers languishing.
'Tis time to leave the books in dust,	5
And oil the unused armour's rust,
Removing from the wall
The corslet of the hall.
So restless Cromwell could not cease
In the inglorious arts of peace,	10
But through adventurous war
Urgèd his active star:

The 'forward youth' is not named ......it's certainly neither Cromwell or Marvell. Appears to be a scholar told to put his books to one side, take down the 'corslet'  ( armour that covers the chest and back ) . Cromwell is dynamic being 'restless' , and following his own fate via an 'active star'.

The power of Cromwell appears supernatural , the 'three-fork'd lightning' is a sign of Jove's power in Roman mythology.

And like the three-fork'd lightning, first
Breaking the clouds where it was nurst,
Did thorough his own Side	15
His fiery way divide.

             The power of Cromwell appears supernatural , the 'three-fork'd lightning' is a sign of Jove's power in Roman mythology.

                                           

To ruin the great work of time,
And cast the Kingdoms old	35
Into another mould;
Though Justice against Fate complain,
And plead the ancient Rights in vain—
But those do hold or break
As men are strong or weak;	40
Nature, that hateth emptiness,
Allows of penetration less,
And therefore must make room
Where greater spirits come

Notions such as 'Justice' are set against 'Fate', 'Ancient Rights' are 'in vain' . Something quite eerie going on. Seems that the whole ideological basis of the Parliamentarian cause means nothing in historical terms. Nature only shifts when some 'greater spirit' comes. And as we have seen above, the sky is penetrated  by Cromwell's essential power. That thence the Royal actor borne   The tragic scaffold might adorn:       While round the armèd bands   55     Did clap their bloody hands.      He nothing common did or mean   Upon that memorable scene,       But with his keener eye       The axe's edge did try;

The 'Royal actor' is of course Charles I . Andrew Marvell accepts that Charles faced death with dignity ...'He nothing common did or mean'. Marvell doesn't justify nor does he decry the execution, he dies simply because he has fallen victim to a superior force of Nature i.e. Cromwell.

A Bleeding Head, where they begun,
Did fright the architects to run;	70
And yet in that the State
Foresaw its happy fate!

The 'Bleeding Head ' of Charles I is part of the myth of the Roman Republic. The ground were  an unidentified human head was found was seen as a fitting and auspicious site for a temple to Jupiter.  The Marvell Society commentary -please see the 'Roman Voices' link below- also suggest this.

And now the Irish are ashamed
To see themselves in one year tamed:
So much one man can do	75
That does both act and know.

Speaks for itself. Notice that there's no attempt to evoke 'The Good Old Cause', Cromwell's military ability is the sole reason for the Irish defeat.

The English hunter him mistake,	110
Nor lay his hounds in near
The Caledonian deer.
But Thou, the War's and Fortune's son,
March indefatigably on;
And for the last effect	115
Still keep the sword erect:

The 'English Hunter' is of course Cromwell. The Scots are his prey -'The Caledonian deer'. Elsewhere in the poem Cromwell is likened to a falcon. It is also noticeable how non-Christian the poem is , which is in keeping with the early Roman reference points. Cromwell is 'the War's and Fortune's son. It is unlikely that Cromwell ever saw this poem, Thomas Fairfax may have done as Andrew Marvell was a  tutor living in his household.



Links

Full text of Ode upon Cromwell's Return from Ireland

Home page of Marvell Society

Marvell Society article   Roman Voices in An Horation Ode