Requiem for the Croppies - A poem by Seamus Heaney

Seamus Heaney - Requiem for the Croppies

The pockets of our greatcoats full of barley...
No kitchens on the run, no striking camp...
We moved quick and sudden in our own country.
The priest lay behind ditches with the tramp.
A people hardly marching... on the hike...
We found new tactics happening each day: 
We'd cut through reins and rider with the pike
And stampede cattle into infantry, 
Then retreat through hedges where cavalry must be thrown.
Until... on Vinegar Hill... the final conclave.
Terraced thousands died, shaking scythes at cannon.
The hillside blushed, soaked in our broken wave.
They buried us without shroud or coffin
And in August... the barley grew up out of our grave.

Added: on September 22nd, 2005 at 5:18 AM | Viewed: 2595 times | Comments (6)

Requiem for the Croppies - Comments and Information
Poet: Seamus Heaney Poem: Requiem for the Croppies Comment 6 of 6, added on October 6th, 2005 at 10:33 AM. sorry to all those who like heaney but to be honest his poems are dull and broing snore he totally ruins what i love about the irish culture in almost all of his poems, he is boring and ruins poetry Roxy Comment 5 of 6, added on September 27th, 2005 at 1:54 AM. I'll give you croppies, here, get a good look at that! That's what two hamsters and a bucket of fried chicken will do to ya...blasted croppies. Bill from Brunei Darussalam, Negara Comment 4 of 6, added on September 22nd, 2005 at 5:18 AM. well... im not much of a 'heaneybopper'. I find that with a very great deal of his poetry, he churns it out because that is what he is meant to do as a poet... make lots of poetry. And then with poems such as "Mid term break" and "Follower" his poems are really uninspiring till the very last stanza where he manage4s to redeem himself. However... this poem in particular I do LOVE. Another of my favourites is "Punishment" and "Limbo". Heaney doesn't do many great outstanding poems... but those three i would be proud of. azile from Australia More Comments >> Are you looking for more information on this poem? Perhaps you are trying to analyze it? The poem, Requiem for the Croppies, has received 6 comments. Click here to read them, and perhaps post a comment of your own. Of course you can also always discuss poems by Seamus Heaney with others on the Poetry Connection poetry forum!

Poem Info
Requiem for the Croppies Last read: 2008-07-23 10:08:59 Viewed 2595 times. Added on September 22nd, 2005 at 5:18 AM.

Heaney Info
Biography More Poems (30 poems) Books