Death Of Gormlaith

Gormlaith, wife of Niall Glendu,
        Happy was your dream that night,
        Dreamt you woke in sudden fright,
Niall of Ulster stood by you.

Niall of Ulster, dead and gone,
        Many a year had come again,
        Him who was in battle slain
Now your glad eyes rest upon.

Well your gaze caressed him oer,
        His dark head you loved so well,
        Where the coulin curled and fell
On the clever brow he bore.

Those brave shoulders wide and strong,
        Many a Dane had quaked to see,
        Never a phantom fair as he,-
Wife of Glendu gazed so long.

Glad Queen Gormlaith, at the dawn
        Up you sprang to draw him near,
        Ah! the grey cock loud and clear
Crew, and then the Ghost was gone.

Stretched your arms in vain request,
        Slipped and fell, and wounded sore
        Called his name, then spake no more,
For the bed-stick pierced your breast.

Queen, your smiling lips were dumb
        With that last dear name you cried,
        Yet some had it, ere you died,
Niall of Ulster whispered, Come.

Dora Sigerson Shorter

Dora Sigerson Shorter was an Irish poet and sculptor born in Dublin in 1866. She was one of the leading figures of the Irish Literary Revival, a movement that aimed to promote Irish literature and culture in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. She was also a close friend of W.B. Yeats and married the writer and journalist Clement King Shorter. Dora's work often dealt with themes of Irish nationalism and folklore, and she published several volumes of poetry before her untimely death in 1918.

Dora Sigerson Shorter

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English

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