ROMA
Lucius Brutus sat with his two guests in the courtyard,
His cousin and cousin’s wife who were trying hard,
To convince Brutus of the evil of the king,
‘It is only doom that he will bring,’
Turning to Lucretia said cousin Collatinus,
She said: ‘he killed our rightful ruler, Servius Tullius,
He is bent on power, throughout the lands,
And will do anything, until no-one else stands,’
Brutus was about to speak on the power of sovereigns,
But then, a messenger was brought in,
He came from the monarch, who required the presence of Brutus,
He said to his guests: ‘My mind will walk, I shall consider this.’
Tarquinius Superbus, king of Rome,
Was walking in his garden when Brutus came along,
The king welcomed his kinsman to his home,
‘As you probably know,’ said the great sovereign,
‘My son Sextus is in Gabii, negotiating for his king,’
‘They are against us, I believe,’ said the loyal Brutus,
‘You are quite right, but that may change’ replied tall Superbus,
‘Go to him and tell him what I do here with my powers,’
And with a stick, the king hit the tallest of the poppies, decapitating the flowers,
‘The death of tall poppies? Is this your message?’
‘Exactly,’ said Tarquinius, and killed another, aggressive.
Entering the town of Gabii, pondering on the communication,
Brutus asked a guard, standing at his station,
The whereabouts of Sextus Tarquinius for his mission from the king,
The guard enthused about Sextus, the man’s praises he did sing,
‘The king of Rome will be shown how Gabii did its thing!’
Armed with the information, Brutus made his way to the prince,
Who appeared to have injuries, bringing on an inward wince,
‘Do not be alarmed, my friend!’ said the gleeful Sextus,
‘I am loved in Gabii - these injuries have a purpose,
I have convinced this town that I am mistreated by my father,
The wounds are “proof” and have allowed me to garner,
Such power over the town elite,
That no doubt, some of them would lick my feet!’
Brutus told Sextus of the death of tall poppies,
‘I understand,’ said the prince, ‘a cunning man, my pappy,’
The prince made out a list of the townsfolk that were best,
And handed it to his men, for them to arrest,
He called an assembly of citizens, to whom he made a speech,
‘People of Gabii, there is a plot, and your help I beseech,
Your masters’ plot against me, to aid Rome,
I have issued orders for their deaths, to protect your home!
For all of our communal safety,
I suggest that you make oaths to me!’
The king of Gabii spoke up, an old man and weak,
‘It is only our safety, that we do seek,
We will swear to support you mighty Sextus,
For you have earned great respect from us!’
Sextus turned to Brutus and gave a secret smile,
The coup was complete for Roma’s monstrous child.
Brutus returned to Rome to give the news to Tarquinius,
The king replied: ‘I knew my son would win this for us,
But we have another problem now dear Brutus,
For Syracuse and Carthage have got it in for us,
The two are encamped in the town of Ardea,
And we must take it to live without fear,
Of the end of everything we’ve so far achieved,
I’m instructing men to gather for a siege,’
And so with Tarquinius, maker of law,
Went Brutus, Collatinus and Sextus to war,
A great Etruscan lord, Lars Porsenna,
Bought allies from the north, to fight Greece and Phoenicia.
The siege would be long but we were not scared,
Although our enemies were well prepared,
It seemed their granaries were full,
But nothing could get in, we would stay there until,
They were forced to fight, then we would defeat them,
For they would be half starved by then,
Little did we know the fates were against it,
And that Ardea would survive, and be independent,
Our men were bored, but well fed,
Roma would have won, but it lost its head.
One night in camp, by Ardea, the five were drinking,
They were idly talking out associative thinking,
‘Consider the Magpie,’ said Tarquinius, ‘it mates for life,
The bird, it actually takes a wife!’
‘The Rabbit,’ said prince Sextus, ‘it has my style,
It does all the does, and goes for miles!’
Said Lars Porsenna: ‘There’s a lot to be said for the two,
My wife is the loveliest meal, but life without side-dishes just would not do!’
‘I for one,’ said Brutus meek,
‘Have not settled on a woman, although I do seek,’
‘Lucretia is the most beautiful,’ opined Collatinus the dutiful,
‘I could never take another, she is my lover,
She has wit and sense, total recompense,
For any slight or disappointment in life …’
‘You have no other? Why how strange!’
Interjected Sextus, a man with range,
‘You’d be utterly impressed with my lovely wife,’
Slurred Collatinus, pride coming to life,
And with some laughter, jokes did incur,
They decided to go to Roma, and see her.
The lovely Lucretia was at the loom,
They spied her through a window, into the room,
Her legs and breasts could be imaged through her dress,
The imaginary uncovering is part of the joy, confess,
Her smooth arms were bare up to her shoulders,
This was a little too much for drunken soldiers,
And they soon began wooping and laughing, and she was nervous,
Then Collatinus went to his wife,
And explained it was a sad part of men’s life,
That spying on women was only a game,
And he would make sure it never happened again,
The drinking was continued at the house of Collatinus,
Sextus simmered, all laughed, no bad feeling between us,
But they would soon have to return to Ardea and the siege,
And king Tarquinus had instructions before they did leave:
‘The loyalty of Roma must assured and led,
For the citizens are unhappy with my election, it is said,
They are unruly, undependable, brutish and rude,
It must be seen to that all they can do is brood,
Sextus, you must stay and see Spurius Lucretius,
Prefect of Rome, and father to wonderful Lucretia,
Make sure that he keeps them properly fed,
Listens to their complaints, but nothing must be said,
Until the time that I return victorious from the siege,
And can enforce law and confidence, for I am the ultimate liege.’
And so apart from Sextus they all went back,
Some troubled by the speech, for others, care did lack.
The next two days slowly turned,
Sextus did return,
But on the second night Collatinus turned up,
In the tent of Brutus with a troubled look,
Lucretia had secretly summoned him back to Rome,
Told him to bring a trusted friend, come back home,
Collatinus and Brutus travelled through the night,
With no idea of what they were putting right,
They arrived at the house of Collatinus,
And there was her father Spurius,
With him was his trusted ally,
Publicola, carrier of the fasci,
‘Lucretia is in her room,
She will not come out until you are home,’
Spurius informed us, full of doom.
Lucretia came down the stairs weeping,
But it was not long before she was speaking:
‘Listen to this terrible tale,
And put it right, if there is a way,
The other night I was sleeping naked, stark,
I was woken up by Sextus in the dark,
He was washing my belly and breathing heavy,
He said he would kill me, unless he could have me,
He would put a dead slave in my bed,
Say he had discovered us in flagrante delicto, and by honour dead,
He forced himself on me, though I had to agree,
And then he was gone, saying we would be married,
Please right this terrible dishonour,
More for yourself, for I should be gone now,’
Gasping and crying her beautiful tears,
Lucretia picked up a knife, and considered it, it appeared,
The men were up, but not quick enough,
For she plunged it into her own stomach.
Collatinus held her close in tearful anguish,
‘No! No!’ he cried, ‘It is my doing! My death!’
‘No,’ she whispered to him in a dying breath,
‘Not your fault, not at all,
It is that man who spoiled it all.’
Collatinus kissed her twice upon the lips,
Her father Spurius was wretched as he watched,
Publicola and Brutus were in shock,
Collatinus held her as she died,
They all were quiet, hands to mouths and eyes.
Brutus carefully separated Collatinus from Lucretia,
Publicola helped him move her to the sofa,
She was dead now, in another place,
He closed her staring eyes, regarded her beautiful face,
Brutus took the dagger off her, and began to speak:
‘We are human, and like all animals law we seek,
My loyalty to the Tarquins has been a pretence,
This I must now confess,
We must do away with the scourge of Roma, it’s a fact,
That with this heinous crime, we now should act,’
‘You use this awful shit,
To further your own politic?’
Blurted Collatinus, tearful, seamless,
‘My friend,’ said Brutus calmly, ‘Lucretia must be avenged,
Tarquinius ‘ rule of Roma must be put to an end,
We can do both for all reasons,
Bring peace and freedom to the city, and not just for a season,
I swear on this dagger, and Lucretia’s blood,’
Continued Brutus, as he stood,
‘I swear by Mars and all the gods,
That any who stands with the Tarquinii,
Are my enemy,
And I will not be reconciled to the tyrant,
If I die, my blood will be lent,
To yourself, and a peoples’ movement.’
Collatinus took the dagger from his friend,
And made the same oath, his enemies to send,
Away, away, from this place,
All four men, their blood did race,
Spurius and Publicola took their turn,
Swearing on blood for freedom and revenge.
In the day they took the body of Lucretia,
To the forum of Roma,
People gathered to mourn under a shade,
The movement was beginning, great speeches were made,
A farmer asked: ‘Who should be king if the Tarquins are out?’
Replied Brutus: ‘There will be no king, that is what this is about,
Roma for the people! The end of tyrants!
We will have a polis like the Greeks, a system of changes and constants!’
‘But the rule of wisdom should never be over!’
Argued the sensible Publicola,
‘We should have a senate of honourably proved men,’
Suggested Spurius, ‘We will fight the Tarquinii then!’
‘This senate should appoint two rulers,’
Demanded the widowed Collatinus,
‘These two should agree on any action made,
So that tyranny will be finally dead!’
Collatinus and Brutus were made the two consuls of Roma,
Citizens were armed, tyranny was over,
Soon they would have to face Tarquinius at Ardea,
And Collatinus acted on an idea,
Of a pact with the Greeks, who they could use,
That would bring in Carthage and Syracuse,
‘My enemy’s enemy is my friend,’
Said Collatinus, who stressed and grinned,
So when the army of Tarquinius and Lars Porsenna,
Moved towards Rome to crush the rebels,
They had the defenders of Ardea moving behind them,
And they realised they would never win again,
Lars Porsenna made a peace,
Tarquinius was forced to cease,
The present effort to return home,
For all Tarquinii were exiled from Rome.
The Roman army came home,
Swore to senate, people, republic, Rome!
A Greek emissary came to see the situation,
Offered Brutus and Collatinus congratulations,
But warned that Syracuse and Carthage were happy with the peace,
Their men were off, so they were to release,
Lars Porsenna to act on his own will,
What that was - unknown still,
Porsenna came to see Brutus,
He said: ‘Roma owes allegiance to us!
It is the southern Etruscan outpost!
You must agree to this or give up the ghost!
For the Etruscans,
Are not republicans,
We would much prefer the Tarquinii,
But to give your oath to me,
Is the only way for you to remain and be!’
Without Collatinus, Brutus refused,
Roma would no longer be used!
As Porsenna’s army started to move,
Brutus went back to the citizens of Gabii, there to prove,
That they had been taken advantage of,
That they must throw Sextus off,
He was in danger, for he found prince Sextus there,
‘Ha!,’ said the prince, ‘you think you scare?
Roma is rightfully my father’s,
You dishonour us all with your palaver,’
‘You are not of Roma,’ responded Brutus,
‘Both of your grandfathers were from Etrusca,
We are from Troy and that is the truth in us,
You bring tyranny and bluster,’
‘People of Gabii turn away!
Away from the usurper of our homes,
Away from this sick prince who uses your minds for play!
Like a grub in a living man,
They eat on death and war,
Like the wolves they adore,
We must live and live again!
Not be rotten flesh for his ken!’
‘Us Tarquinii, we represent law!’
The unscrupulous Sextus did roar,
‘Your republic will lead to chaos and blood,
We will crush it before it gets stood!’
‘Law!’ shouted Brutus irate,
‘We all know that you did rape,
Poor Lucretia who is now dead,
By the particles of law you should lose your head!
The particles of chaos move too,
This is the world, not just you!’
The citizens of Gabii were greatly moved,
To arrest prince Sextus as it proved,
And they marched behind their leaders,
To catch Lars Porsenna and his feeders,
To trap his army between them and Collatinus,
Roma was saved between us.
Roma carried on for eternity,
And to tell the truth, it was not always free,
But some-days one may do as one will,
Others, you are a slave until,
Someone like Brutus or Collatinus or Sextus comes along,
And you discover you are where you belong,
And is a city ever truly free?
Is one enslaved to be?
Can you break free of your own ideas?
If you could would you be here?
Roma is the capital of Italy,
And what will be, will be.
Lucius Brutus sat with his two guests in the courtyard,
His cousin and cousin’s wife who were trying hard,
To convince Brutus of the evil of the king,
‘It is only doom that he will bring,’
Turning to Lucretia said cousin Collatinus,
She said: ‘he killed our rightful ruler, Servius Tullius,
He is bent on power, throughout the lands,
And will do anything, until no-one else stands,’
Brutus was about to speak on the power of sovereigns,
But then, a messenger was brought in,
He came from the monarch, who required the presence of Brutus,
He said to his guests: ‘My mind will walk, I shall consider this.’
Tarquinius Superbus, king of Rome,
Was walking in his garden when Brutus came along,
The king welcomed his kinsman to his home,
‘As you probably know,’ said the great sovereign,
‘My son Sextus is in Gabii, negotiating for his king,’
‘They are against us, I believe,’ said the loyal Brutus,
‘You are quite right, but that may change’ replied tall Superbus,
‘Go to him and tell him what I do here with my powers,’
And with a stick, the king hit the tallest of the poppies, decapitating the flowers,
‘The death of tall poppies? Is this your message?’
‘Exactly,’ said Tarquinius, and killed another, aggressive.
Entering the town of Gabii, pondering on the communication,
Brutus asked a guard, standing at his station,
The whereabouts of Sextus Tarquinius for his mission from the king,
The guard enthused about Sextus, the man’s praises he did sing,
‘The king of Rome will be shown how Gabii did its thing!’
Armed with the information, Brutus made his way to the prince,
Who appeared to have injuries, bringing on an inward wince,
‘Do not be alarmed, my friend!’ said the gleeful Sextus,
‘I am loved in Gabii - these injuries have a purpose,
I have convinced this town that I am mistreated by my father,
The wounds are “proof” and have allowed me to garner,
Such power over the town elite,
That no doubt, some of them would lick my feet!’
Brutus told Sextus of the death of tall poppies,
‘I understand,’ said the prince, ‘a cunning man, my pappy,’
The prince made out a list of the townsfolk that were best,
And handed it to his men, for them to arrest,
He called an assembly of citizens, to whom he made a speech,
‘People of Gabii, there is a plot, and your help I beseech,
Your masters’ plot against me, to aid Rome,
I have issued orders for their deaths, to protect your home!
For all of our communal safety,
I suggest that you make oaths to me!’
The king of Gabii spoke up, an old man and weak,
‘It is only our safety, that we do seek,
We will swear to support you mighty Sextus,
For you have earned great respect from us!’
Sextus turned to Brutus and gave a secret smile,
The coup was complete for Roma’s monstrous child.
Brutus returned to Rome to give the news to Tarquinius,
The king replied: ‘I knew my son would win this for us,
But we have another problem now dear Brutus,
For Syracuse and Carthage have got it in for us,
The two are encamped in the town of Ardea,
And we must take it to live without fear,
Of the end of everything we’ve so far achieved,
I’m instructing men to gather for a siege,’
And so with Tarquinius, maker of law,
Went Brutus, Collatinus and Sextus to war,
A great Etruscan lord, Lars Porsenna,
Bought allies from the north, to fight Greece and Phoenicia.
The siege would be long but we were not scared,
Although our enemies were well prepared,
It seemed their granaries were full,
But nothing could get in, we would stay there until,
They were forced to fight, then we would defeat them,
For they would be half starved by then,
Little did we know the fates were against it,
And that Ardea would survive, and be independent,
Our men were bored, but well fed,
Roma would have won, but it lost its head.
One night in camp, by Ardea, the five were drinking,
They were idly talking out associative thinking,
‘Consider the Magpie,’ said Tarquinius, ‘it mates for life,
The bird, it actually takes a wife!’
‘The Rabbit,’ said prince Sextus, ‘it has my style,
It does all the does, and goes for miles!’
Said Lars Porsenna: ‘There’s a lot to be said for the two,
My wife is the loveliest meal, but life without side-dishes just would not do!’
‘I for one,’ said Brutus meek,
‘Have not settled on a woman, although I do seek,’
‘Lucretia is the most beautiful,’ opined Collatinus the dutiful,
‘I could never take another, she is my lover,
She has wit and sense, total recompense,
For any slight or disappointment in life …’
‘You have no other? Why how strange!’
Interjected Sextus, a man with range,
‘You’d be utterly impressed with my lovely wife,’
Slurred Collatinus, pride coming to life,
And with some laughter, jokes did incur,
They decided to go to Roma, and see her.
The lovely Lucretia was at the loom,
They spied her through a window, into the room,
Her legs and breasts could be imaged through her dress,
The imaginary uncovering is part of the joy, confess,
Her smooth arms were bare up to her shoulders,
This was a little too much for drunken soldiers,
And they soon began wooping and laughing, and she was nervous,
Then Collatinus went to his wife,
And explained it was a sad part of men’s life,
That spying on women was only a game,
And he would make sure it never happened again,
The drinking was continued at the house of Collatinus,
Sextus simmered, all laughed, no bad feeling between us,
But they would soon have to return to Ardea and the siege,
And king Tarquinus had instructions before they did leave:
‘The loyalty of Roma must assured and led,
For the citizens are unhappy with my election, it is said,
They are unruly, undependable, brutish and rude,
It must be seen to that all they can do is brood,
Sextus, you must stay and see Spurius Lucretius,
Prefect of Rome, and father to wonderful Lucretia,
Make sure that he keeps them properly fed,
Listens to their complaints, but nothing must be said,
Until the time that I return victorious from the siege,
And can enforce law and confidence, for I am the ultimate liege.’
And so apart from Sextus they all went back,
Some troubled by the speech, for others, care did lack.
The next two days slowly turned,
Sextus did return,
But on the second night Collatinus turned up,
In the tent of Brutus with a troubled look,
Lucretia had secretly summoned him back to Rome,
Told him to bring a trusted friend, come back home,
Collatinus and Brutus travelled through the night,
With no idea of what they were putting right,
They arrived at the house of Collatinus,
And there was her father Spurius,
With him was his trusted ally,
Publicola, carrier of the fasci,
‘Lucretia is in her room,
She will not come out until you are home,’
Spurius informed us, full of doom.
Lucretia came down the stairs weeping,
But it was not long before she was speaking:
‘Listen to this terrible tale,
And put it right, if there is a way,
The other night I was sleeping naked, stark,
I was woken up by Sextus in the dark,
He was washing my belly and breathing heavy,
He said he would kill me, unless he could have me,
He would put a dead slave in my bed,
Say he had discovered us in flagrante delicto, and by honour dead,
He forced himself on me, though I had to agree,
And then he was gone, saying we would be married,
Please right this terrible dishonour,
More for yourself, for I should be gone now,’
Gasping and crying her beautiful tears,
Lucretia picked up a knife, and considered it, it appeared,
The men were up, but not quick enough,
For she plunged it into her own stomach.
Collatinus held her close in tearful anguish,
‘No! No!’ he cried, ‘It is my doing! My death!’
‘No,’ she whispered to him in a dying breath,
‘Not your fault, not at all,
It is that man who spoiled it all.’
Collatinus kissed her twice upon the lips,
Her father Spurius was wretched as he watched,
Publicola and Brutus were in shock,
Collatinus held her as she died,
They all were quiet, hands to mouths and eyes.
Brutus carefully separated Collatinus from Lucretia,
Publicola helped him move her to the sofa,
She was dead now, in another place,
He closed her staring eyes, regarded her beautiful face,
Brutus took the dagger off her, and began to speak:
‘We are human, and like all animals law we seek,
My loyalty to the Tarquins has been a pretence,
This I must now confess,
We must do away with the scourge of Roma, it’s a fact,
That with this heinous crime, we now should act,’
‘You use this awful shit,
To further your own politic?’
Blurted Collatinus, tearful, seamless,
‘My friend,’ said Brutus calmly, ‘Lucretia must be avenged,
Tarquinius ‘ rule of Roma must be put to an end,
We can do both for all reasons,
Bring peace and freedom to the city, and not just for a season,
I swear on this dagger, and Lucretia’s blood,’
Continued Brutus, as he stood,
‘I swear by Mars and all the gods,
That any who stands with the Tarquinii,
Are my enemy,
And I will not be reconciled to the tyrant,
If I die, my blood will be lent,
To yourself, and a peoples’ movement.’
Collatinus took the dagger from his friend,
And made the same oath, his enemies to send,
Away, away, from this place,
All four men, their blood did race,
Spurius and Publicola took their turn,
Swearing on blood for freedom and revenge.
In the day they took the body of Lucretia,
To the forum of Roma,
People gathered to mourn under a shade,
The movement was beginning, great speeches were made,
A farmer asked: ‘Who should be king if the Tarquins are out?’
Replied Brutus: ‘There will be no king, that is what this is about,
Roma for the people! The end of tyrants!
We will have a polis like the Greeks, a system of changes and constants!’
‘But the rule of wisdom should never be over!’
Argued the sensible Publicola,
‘We should have a senate of honourably proved men,’
Suggested Spurius, ‘We will fight the Tarquinii then!’
‘This senate should appoint two rulers,’
Demanded the widowed Collatinus,
‘These two should agree on any action made,
So that tyranny will be finally dead!’
Collatinus and Brutus were made the two consuls of Roma,
Citizens were armed, tyranny was over,
Soon they would have to face Tarquinius at Ardea,
And Collatinus acted on an idea,
Of a pact with the Greeks, who they could use,
That would bring in Carthage and Syracuse,
‘My enemy’s enemy is my friend,’
Said Collatinus, who stressed and grinned,
So when the army of Tarquinius and Lars Porsenna,
Moved towards Rome to crush the rebels,
They had the defenders of Ardea moving behind them,
And they realised they would never win again,
Lars Porsenna made a peace,
Tarquinius was forced to cease,
The present effort to return home,
For all Tarquinii were exiled from Rome.
The Roman army came home,
Swore to senate, people, republic, Rome!
A Greek emissary came to see the situation,
Offered Brutus and Collatinus congratulations,
But warned that Syracuse and Carthage were happy with the peace,
Their men were off, so they were to release,
Lars Porsenna to act on his own will,
What that was - unknown still,
Porsenna came to see Brutus,
He said: ‘Roma owes allegiance to us!
It is the southern Etruscan outpost!
You must agree to this or give up the ghost!
For the Etruscans,
Are not republicans,
We would much prefer the Tarquinii,
But to give your oath to me,
Is the only way for you to remain and be!’
Without Collatinus, Brutus refused,
Roma would no longer be used!
As Porsenna’s army started to move,
Brutus went back to the citizens of Gabii, there to prove,
That they had been taken advantage of,
That they must throw Sextus off,
He was in danger, for he found prince Sextus there,
‘Ha!,’ said the prince, ‘you think you scare?
Roma is rightfully my father’s,
You dishonour us all with your palaver,’
‘You are not of Roma,’ responded Brutus,
‘Both of your grandfathers were from Etrusca,
We are from Troy and that is the truth in us,
You bring tyranny and bluster,’
‘People of Gabii turn away!
Away from the usurper of our homes,
Away from this sick prince who uses your minds for play!
Like a grub in a living man,
They eat on death and war,
Like the wolves they adore,
We must live and live again!
Not be rotten flesh for his ken!’
‘Us Tarquinii, we represent law!’
The unscrupulous Sextus did roar,
‘Your republic will lead to chaos and blood,
We will crush it before it gets stood!’
‘Law!’ shouted Brutus irate,
‘We all know that you did rape,
Poor Lucretia who is now dead,
By the particles of law you should lose your head!
The particles of chaos move too,
This is the world, not just you!’
The citizens of Gabii were greatly moved,
To arrest prince Sextus as it proved,
And they marched behind their leaders,
To catch Lars Porsenna and his feeders,
To trap his army between them and Collatinus,
Roma was saved between us.
Roma carried on for eternity,
And to tell the truth, it was not always free,
But some-days one may do as one will,
Others, you are a slave until,
Someone like Brutus or Collatinus or Sextus comes along,
And you discover you are where you belong,
And is a city ever truly free?
Is one enslaved to be?
Can you break free of your own ideas?
If you could would you be here?
Roma is the capital of Italy,
And what will be, will be.
