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Anti-war essays, poems, short stories and literary excerpts
British writers on peace and war
William Congreve: Cursed ambition wakes the world to war and ruin
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William Congreve
From The Birth of the Muse
The madding winds are hush’d, the tempests cease,
And ev’ry rolling surge resides in peace.
And now the sacred leaf a landscape wears,
Where, Heav’n serene, and air unmov’d appears.
The rose and lily paint the verdant plains,
And palm and olive shade the sylvan scenes.
The peaceful Thames beneath his banks abides,
And soft and still the silver surface glides.
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Whole nature wears a gay and joyous face,
And blooms and ripens with the fruits of peace.
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No more the forward youth pursues alarms,
Nor leaves the sacred arts for stubborn arms.
No more the mothers from their hopes are torn,
Nor weeping maids the promis’d lover mourn.
No more the widows’ shrieks and orphans’ cries
Torment the patient air and pierce the skies.
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