Axis & Allies - damowords

Fontainbleu
Allied armies surround the Paris wall,
ʺWe must fight on!ʺ rallies Napoleon,
Flusterʹd with the fathoming of his fall,
ʺBut sire, all hopes of victory have gone!ʺ
Dispirited
The Marshalls gather round
On one point united, the solution is found.
ʺNever...ʺ alas, to save his face
Where the sleek Sun King once dined
Now more morgue than lively palace,
Noble abdication signʹd,
ʺYou must be exiled from your race,
In comfort there confined,ʺ
The Allies dictate to the dictator ‐
ʺWhere shall I resideʺ ʺRot upon Elba!ʺ
The Grand Duchess of Tuscany
Dejected & alone,
Her familyʹs greek tragedy
Rejected from the throne ‐
She & her sibling cuckoos from their eagleʹs nests hath flown.
Bagni di Lucca
1814
A Challenge
Once, romance, regent ruler of an age,
Dwelt deep in the beatings of great menʹs hearts
Conjuring the captain that helpʹd to cage
The grand thief of Europe, as woodland parts;
He halts his ride
At the edge of tall trees,
Surveys a countryside of swaying yellow seas.
With knowing eyes he scannʹd the scene,
ʺI have seen its like before,ʺ
Then spurrʹd his mount, the moment keen,
& pauses upon the contour,
Thereby throʹ blue sky flew, serene,
Doves of a lovely shore,
On which Wellington, warlord of dead men,
Says, ʺSwiftly, De Lancey, pass me my pen!ʺ
Unto a dove the Duke did call
While scribbling down one word...
White wings in fall, how soon the scroll
Tied to that gentle bird,
Which flutterʹd up to lofty heights where nothing mortal
stirrʹd.
Mont Saint‐Jean
1814