The Bard by Gray: summary and analysis
Thomas Gray wrote the poem The Bard in the year 1757. It is a strong and imaginative poem. The poem is about love for one’s country, the power of poetry, and the gift of seeing the future. The poem takes place in ancient Wales during the time of King Edward I. In the poem, the last Welsh bard, who is both a poet and a prophet, speaks to King Edward.
The bard was cursing because King Edward I had conquered Wales and killed many Welsh people, including the bards (poets and prophets) who were the voice of their culture and traditions. The last surviving bard, in Thomas Gray’s poem The Bard, was filled with pain, anger, and pride. He stood on a mountain and cursed King Edward because the king had destroyed his land, killed his fellow poets, and tried to erase Welsh culture.
Lines 1–8
“Ruin seize thee, ruthless King!
Confusion on thy banners wait;
Though fanned by Conquest’s crimson wing
They mock the air with idle state.
Helm, nor hauberk’s twisted mail,
Nor even thy virtues, tyrant, shall avail
To save thy secret soul from nightly fears,
From Cambria’s curse, from Cambria’s tears!”
Summary: The Bard curses King Edward I, calling him cruel. He wishes ruin and disorder upon the King’s army, even though it seems powerful and victorious. He says the King’s armor and even his good qualities won’t protect him from guilt, nightmares, and the curse of Wales (Cambria).
Lines 9–14
“Such were the sounds, that o’er the crested pride
Of the first Edward scatter’d wild dismay,
As down the steep of Snowdon’s shaggy side
He wound with toilsome march his long array.
Stout Gloster stood aghast in speechless trance:
‘To arms!’ cried Mortimer, and couch’d his quivering lance.”
Summary: The Bard’s curse causes fear and panic in Edward I and his army as they march down the rocky slopes of Snowdon. Even the brave Gloucester is frozen in shock, while Mortimer reacts by calling his soldiers to arms, readying for battle.
Lines 15–20
On a rock, whose haughty brow
Frowns o’er old Conway’s foaming flood,
Robed in the sable garb of woe,
With haggard eyes the poet stood;
(Loose his beard and hoary hair
Stream’d, like a meteor, to the troubled air);
Summary: The Bard stands on a high rock above the Conway River. He’s dressed in black, mourning the deaths of fellow Welsh bards. His eyes look wild with grief, and his long gray beard and hair blow fiercely in the wind, like a comet or a storm sign.
Lines 21–28
And with a master’s hand, and prophet’s fire,
Struck the deep sorrows of his lyre.
‘Hark, how each giant-oak, and desert-cave,
Sighs to the torrent’s awful voice beneath!
O’er thee, O King! their hundred arms they wave,
Revenge on thee in hoarser murmurs breathe;
Vocal no more, since Cambria’s fatal day,
To high-born Hoel’s harp, or soft Llewellyn’s lay.
Summary: The Bard plays his harp with the passion of a prophet, expressing deep sorrow. Nature itself seems to mourn: the ancient trees and caves echo with sadness, and even the rivers seem to cry for vengeance on the King. Since the King conquered Wales (Cambria), the harps of great Welsh bards like Hoel and Llewellyn have fallen silent.
Lines 29–36
Cold is Cadwallo’s tongue,
That hush’d the stormy main:
Brave Urien sleeps upon his craggy bed:
Mountains, ye mourn in vain
Modred, whose magic song
Made huge Plinlimmon bow his cloud-topp’d head.
On dreary Arvon’s shore they lie,
Smeared with gore, and ghastly pale:
Summary: The Bard remembers great Welsh heroes who are now dead. Cadwallo, once so powerful his voice could calm storms, is now silent. Urien lies buried in rocky mountains. Modred, a magical bard, is dead too—his songs could even move mountains. These heroes rest on the sad, blood-soaked shores of Arvon, pale and lifeless.
Lines 37–44
Far, far aloof the affrighted ravens sail;
The famish’d eagle screams, and passes by.
Dear lost companions of my tuneful art,
Dear as the light that visits these sad eyes,
Dear as the ruddy drops that warm my heart,
Ye died amidst your dying country’s cries—
No more I weep. They do not sleep.
On yonder cliffs, a grisly band,
Summary: Even the birds of prey—ravens and eagles—avoid the death-filled area. The Bard mourns his fellow bards, calling them as dear to him as life itself. They died with their homeland, but he no longer mourns them with tears—because they are not gone forever. Their spirits live on, haunting the cliffs.
Lines 45–48
I see them sit; they linger yet,
Avengers of their native land:
With me in dreadful harmony they join,
And weave with bloody hands the tissue of thy line.
Summary: The Bard sees the ghosts of the bards on the cliffs. They are still present, waiting for revenge. They sing with him a terrifying song of prophecy, predicting the bloody future of the English royal family—“weaving” their fate like a grim tapestry.
Alright, let’s move into Part III of The Bard by Thomas Gray — the most dramatic section, where the Bard prophesies the downfall of Edward’s lineage (the Plantagenets) and the eventual rise of the Tudors, a Welsh royal house. This part is full of historical allusions and intense imagery.
Lines 49–56
“Weave the warp, and weave the woof,
The winding-sheet of Edward’s race.
Give ample room, and verge enough
The characters of hell to trace.
Mark the year, and mark the night,
When Severn shall re-echo with affright
The shrieks of death, through Berkley’s roof that ring,
Shrieks of an agonizing King!”
Summary: The ghostly bards begin to “weave” the death shroud of Edward’s descendants. The “warp and woof” are threads of a funeral cloth. They call for space to write the dark history of Edward’s lineage, full of horror. The Bard foretells the night when the River Severn will echo with the screams of a dying king—referring to the murder of Edward II at Berkeley Castle.
Lines 57–64
She-wolf of France, with unrelenting fangs,
That tear’st the bowels of thy mangled mate,
From thee be born, who o’er thy country hangs
The scourge of Heav’n. What terrors round him wait!
Amazement in his van, with Flight combined,
And Sorrow’s faded form, and Solitude behind.
Summary: The Bard condemns Isabella of France, wife of Edward II, calling her a savage “she-wolf” for helping murder her husband. From her will descend someone who will be a curse on the land—this refers to Richard III. The Bard describes him surrounded by terror, confusion, sorrow, and loneliness.
Lines 65–72
Mighty Victor, mighty Lord,
Low on his funeral couch he lies!
No pitying heart, no eye, afford
A tear to grace his obsequies.
Is the sable warrior fled?
Thy son is gone. He rests among the dead.
The swarm that in thy noon-tide beam were born?
Gone to salute the rising morn.
Summary: The Bard speaks of Edward the Black Prince (“sable warrior”), a powerful and noble figure who is now dead. His son (Richard II) also dies tragically. All the people who prospered under their rule are gone too, swept away by time and change.
Lines 73–80
Fair laughs the Morn, and soft the Zephyr blows,
While proudly riding o’er the azure realm
In gallant trim the gilded vessel goes;
Youth on the prow, and Pleasure at the helm;
Regardless of the sweeping Whirlwind’s sway,
That, hush’d in grim repose, expects his evening prey.
Summary: Here the Bard uses metaphor. He compares the Plantagenet dynasty to a splendid ship sailing under clear skies—youth and joy guiding it. But the peaceful scene hides a lurking storm (the Whirlwind), waiting to destroy it. It’s a warning: doom is coming even when things seem calm.
Lines 81–88
Fill high the sparkling bowl,
The rich repast prepare;
Reft of a crown, he yet may share the feast:
Close by the regal chair
Fell Thirst and Famine scowl
A baleful smile upon their baffled guest.
Heard ye the din of battle bray,
Lance to lance, and horse to horse?
Summary: The Bard continues the prophecy: even a fallen king might enjoy a feast—but suffering (Thirst and Famine) are nearby, mocking him. Then the Bard turns to images of war, asking if they’ve heard the sounds of battle and knights clashing.
Lines 89–96
Long years of havoc urge their destined course,
And through the kindred squadrons mow their way.
Ye Towers of Julius! London’s lasting shame,
With many a foul and midnight murder fed,
Revere his consort’s faith, his father’s fame,
And spare the meek usurper’s holy head.
Summary: The Bard foresees long periods of civil war (like the Wars of the Roses), where even family fights family. He refers to the Tower of London (“Towers of Julius”) as a place of shame, full of secret murders. He pleads with fate to respect the memory of a fallen king’s wife and father, and to spare the life of a gentle ruler—likely Henry VI.
Lines 97–104
Above, below, the rose of snow,
Twin’d with her blushing foe, we spread:
The bristled Boar in infant gore
Wallows beneath the thorny shade.
Now, brothers, bending o’er the accursèd loom,
Stamp we our vengeance deep, and ratify his doom.
Summary: The Bard describes the union of the white rose (York) and red rose (Lancaster)—the symbol of the Tudor dynasty, ending the Wars of the Roses. The “bristled Boar” (symbol of Richard III) dies violently. The ghostly bards now finish weaving the dark fate of Edward’s line, sealing it with vengeance.
Lines 105–112
Edward, lo! to sudden fate
(Weave we the woof. The thread is spun.)
Half of thy heart we consecrate.
(The web is wove. The work is done.)”
—“Stay, oh stay! nor thus forlorn
Leave me unbless’d, unpitied, here to mourn:
In yon bright track, that fires the western skies,
They melt, they vanish from my eyes.
Summary: The bards declare Edward’s fate is sealed—their prophetic tapestry is complete. The Bard then begs the spirits to stay, not to abandon him in sorrow. He watches them disappear like light fading in the western sky.
Lines 113–118 (Final lines)
But oh! what solemn scenes on Snowdon’s height
Descending slow their glittering skirts unroll?
Visions of glory, spare my aching sight,
Ye unborn ages, crowd not on my soul!
No more our long-lost Arthur we bewail.
All hail, ye genuine kings, Britannia’s issue, hail!
Summary: At the very end, the Bard sees visions of hope and glory on Snowdon’s heights — a prophecy of the Tudor dynasty, descended from Welsh blood. He asks the future to come gently, as the powerful vision overwhelms him. Finally, he rejoices: they no longer need to mourn King Arthur. The true, rightful British kings — the Tudors — have arrived.
Short Analysis
The Bard is a rich and emotional poem that explores the power of poetry, the pain of cultural loss, and the justice of history. Gray uses the figure of a Welsh bard as a symbol of national identity and resistance against oppression. The bard’s curse and prophecies reflect the downfall of the English Plantagenet kings and the eventual rise of the Welsh-descended Tudor dynasty. The poem blends classical form with medieval themes and powerful natural imagery, making it a key precursor to Romanticism. Gray presents the poet not just as an artist, but as a prophet and defender of cultural memory.