The Full Text of “In Romney Marsh”
1As I went down to Dymchurch Wall,
2I heard the South sing o'er the land;
3I saw the yellow sunlight fall
4On knolls where Norman churches stand.
5And ringing shrilly, taut and lithe,
6Within the wind a core of sound,
7The wire from Romney town to Hythe
8Along its airy journey wound.
9A veil of purple vapour flowed
10And trailed its fringe along the Straits;
11The upper air like sapphire glowed:
12And roses filled Heaven's central gates.
13Masts in the offing wagged their tops;
14The swinging waves pealed on the shore;
15The saffron beach, all diamond drops
16And beads of surge, prolonged the roar.
17As I came up from Dymchurch Wall,
18I saw above the Downs' low crest
19The crimson brands of sunset fall,
20Flicker and fade from out the west.
21Night sank: like flakes of silver fire
22The stars in one great shower came down;
23Shrill blew the wind; and shrill the wire
24Rang out from Hythe to Romney town.
25The darkly shining salt sea drops
26Streamed as the waves clashed on the shore;
27The beach, with all its organ stops
28Pealing again, prolonged the roar.
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“In Romney Marsh” Introduction
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"In Romney Marsh," by Scottish poet and playwright John Davidson, takes the reader on a walk along the southeastern coast of England. The speaker describes a scene of spectacular natural beauty, observing the many brilliant hues of the sunset, the music of the wind, and the roar of the waves. Next to nature's awe-inspiring display, the human world seems suddenly small and fragile. "In Romney Marsh" was published in Davidson's 1895 collection Ballads and Songs.
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“In Romney Marsh” Summary
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I went for a walk by the Dymchurch sea wall, hearing the south wind blow over the land like a song. The sun's yellow light illuminated the small hills where old churches, built by the Normans, still stand.
And ringing out harshly, tight and thin, from deep inside the wind, was the telegraph wire between Romney and Hythe, running its winding course through the air.
The sky was covered by a mist of purple, the edges of which dragged along behind it through the coastal waters. The air above this mist glowed like a rich blue jewel, and the entrance to the heavens was filled with the rosy hues of sunset.
The masts of ships in the distance fluttered like dogs wagging their tails. The waves swung back and forth against the shoreline, their roar echoing off the yellow beach, which was filled with jewel-like droplets of water and foam.
Walking by that Dymchurch wall, I looked out over the low rides of the surrounding countryside. Deep red light fell in flickers across the earth and then faded away as the sun set in the west.
Then night fell, the stars spilling across the sky all at once in a burst of a silver flame. The wind blew harshly, and the telegraph wire kept making those shrill sounds all the way from Hythe to Romney.
The dark, gleaming droplets of salty sea water streamed through the scene as the waves smashed against the coast. The beach, like some great organ instrument, rang out again, making the roar of the water linger.
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“In Romney Marsh” Themes
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Nature and Humanity
"In Romney Marsh" marvels at nature's beauty and power. Throughout the poem, nature creates an awe-inspiring spectacle: the speaker walks over the Romney wetlands in southeast England, struck by the majestic colors of the sunset, the fearsome roar of the sea, and the "silver fire" of the night sky. Even the telegraph wires seem to sing with the wind, while the ships at sea look tiny and tame within this larger scene. Altogether, these images imply that it's nature, not humanity, that really holds all the power in this world.
During the speaker's evening walk, nature puts on an incredible display that the speaker describes in otherworldly terms. "Yellow sunlight" soon turns into "a veil of purple vapour" and a "sapphire" glow. "Roses" seem to fill the sky, which the speaker calls "Heaven's central gates." The beach looks "saffron," and the water like "diamond[s]." When "crimson brands of sunset" give way to the night sky, the view is no less sublime: "like flakes of silver fire / The stars in one great shower came down."
But nature isn't just beautiful in this poem—it's a little frightening, too. This scene offers more than pretty colors: it offers a display of nature's vast power. The wind blows "shrilly": it's harsh, noisy, and unpleasant. The sea "surge[s]" and "roar[s]"; waves "swing[]" and "clash[]" violently on the shore. The beach seems like some great instrument played by nature's hands.
In short, nature seems to dwarf the human world. Humanity might build its towns and make advances in its technological know-how, but those achievements still seem small on a day like this. The poem begins by mentioning a sea wall ("Dymchurch Wall"): a subtle reminder of nature's power to erode or engulf human creations. The wind makes the telegraph wires ring with a "shrill" sound; nature exerts a form of control over this fragile bit of human infrastructure. Again, the image hints at nature's wider capacity for violence and destruction. The masts of the nearby ships (also human technology) seem to "wag[]" in the wind like dog tails. It's as if they're pets, and nature is their master.
Even though nothing bad happens, then, the speaker's walk demonstrates the contrary sides of the natural world. Nature can be staggeringly beautiful, the poem implies, but it's terrifyingly powerful at the same time.
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Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “In Romney Marsh”
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Lines 1-4
As I went down to Dymchurch Wall,
I heard the South sing o'er the land;
I saw the yellow sunlight fall
On knolls where Norman churches stand.The poem's speaker is taking an evening walk on the southeast coast of England, specifically across the wetland area of Romney Marsh. It's a beautiful place with quintessentially English features: Norman churches, rolling hills, and a dramatic coastline. For the most part, the speaker aims to capture the awe-inspiring sights, sounds, and sensations of a glorious sunset, making for a poem thick with descriptive imagery.
First, the speaker goes by the Dymchuch sea wall, built to protect against flooding (much of the Romney Marsh lies below sea level). Right away, then, the poem hints at nature's capacity for destruction—and humanity's (perhaps futile) attempts to keep nature's might in check.
Next, the speaker hears "the South"—that is, the wind blowing from the south—"sing[ing]" over the landscape. This personification imbues wind with agency and testifies to its beauty: the wind's movement fills the landscape with music.
The speaker also sees "yellow sunlight." This phrase might sound a bit redundant, but it also conveys just how vivid and bright this light is. The sun's rays illuminate nearby "knolls" (a.k.a. small hills), upon which "Norman churches stand." The Normans conquered England in 1066, bringing with them their style of religious architecture (known as Romanesque). Even though these churches still stand, this reference to distant history hints at humanity's ultimate fragility: the buildings might still be there, but the Normans, once so powerful, no longer rule over England.
The first stanza establishes the poem's form, meter, and rhyme scheme, all of which are typical of the era in which the poem was written. The quatrains (four-line stanzas) use an alternating rhyme pattern (ABAB): lines 1 and 3 rhyme with each other, as do lines 2 and 4. Each line is also written in iambic tetrameter, meaning they contain four iambs (metrical feet that follow an unstressed-stressed syllable pattern, da-DUM). Here are lines 1-2, for example:
As I | went down | to Dym- | church Wall,
I heard | the South | sing o'er | the landBoth the rhyme and the meter provide momentum, keeping the poem moving at a regular pace (just like the speaker on their walk).
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Lines 5-8
And ringing shrilly, taut and lithe,
Within the wind a core of sound,
The wire from Romney town to Hythe
Along its airy journey wound.
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Lines 9-12
A veil of purple vapour flowed
And trailed its fringe along the Straits;
The upper air like sapphire glowed:
And roses filled Heaven's central gates. -
Lines 13-16
Masts in the offing wagged their tops;
The swinging waves pealed on the shore;
The saffron beach, all diamond drops
And beads of surge, prolonged the roar. -
Lines 17-20
As I came up from Dymchurch Wall,
I saw above the Downs' low crest
The crimson brands of sunset fall,
Flicker and fade from out the west. -
Lines 21-24
Night sank: like flakes of silver fire
The stars in one great shower came down;
Shrill blew the wind; and shrill the wire
Rang out from Hythe to Romney town. -
Lines 25-28
The darkly shining salt sea drops
Streamed as the waves clashed on the shore;
The beach, with all its organ stops
Pealing again, prolonged the roar.
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“In Romney Marsh” Symbols
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Human Infrastructure
The poem uses human infrastructure to symbolize the tension between human beings and the natural world. Set against the backdrop of a glorious sunset and crashing waves, humanity's creations suddenly seem small and, perhaps, fragile. Things like the "Dymchurch Wall," "Norman churches," and the telegraph wires ultimately reflect both human ingenuity and human vulnerability in the face of nature's might.
First, there's that wall, which is a barrier constructed to keep the sea at bay (most of Romney marsh is below sea level). On the one hand, the wall reflects humanity's attempts to curb and control nature. Yet the wall's very presence also conveys the threat posed by nature's power; were the wall not there, the sea could surge across the land.
The speaker also walks past "Norman churches." Again, these structures speak both to humanity's attempts to assert dominance over the world and human beings' ultimate frailty: though the churches still stand, the people who built them are long gone. Then there's that telegraph wire. It's "taut and lithe," whipping about in the wind. It might represent technological advancement, but it's still subject to nature's whims: a particularly strong gust might sever this communcation link between Romney town and Hythe.
Finally, there are those wagging masts over yonder on the sea. The stormy environment makes them look like pet dogs that have nature as their great master. All in all, readers might get the sense that though human beings have learned to get along with nature, they'll never fully control it.
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“In Romney Marsh” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language
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Alliteration
"In Romney Marsh" uses alliteration to evoke the sights and sounds of the natural world and also to fill the poem with rousing music.
Take the bouncy /d/ sounds in line 1, which open the poem on a jaunty note:
As I went down to Dymchurch Wall,
Alliteration appears in the next line as well, with the hissing /s/ sounds of "South sing." It's a windy day on the marsh, and these sounds suggest the rustle of the wind blowing across the land. The /w/ sounds of the following stanza work similarly, evoking the whoosh of the wind that rattles the telegraph wire:
Within the wind a core of sound,
The wire from Romney town to Hythe
Along its airy journey wound.Notice how assonance adds to the imagery of this stanza as well: the short, nasally /ih/ sounds of "Within the wind" and "ringing shrilly" suggests the high-pitch buzz of that wire.
Alliteration continues to build the poem's music in the following stanzas: "veil of purple vapour," "diamond drops," "crest / The crimson," "Pealing again prolonged," and so on. The poem simply sounds grand and lyrical, in turn conveying the majesty of the scene at hand.
Listen, too, to the evocative /f/ alliteration in lines 20-21:
The crimson brands of sunset fall,
Flicker and fade from out the west.Night sank: like flakes of silver fire
Fricative consonants require the obstruction of airflow. As a result, the sounds of the lines seem to "flicker" in and out, mirroring the glimmer of the sunset and the stars.
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Sibilance
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Metaphor
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Repetition
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Imagery
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“In Romney Marsh” Vocabulary
Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.
- Dymchurch Wall
- The South
- O'er
- Knolls
- Norman Churches
- Shrilly/Shrill
- Taut and lithe
- Romney town to Hythe
- Vapour
- Fringe
- The Straits
- In the offing
- Pealed
- Saffron
- Beads of surge
- The Downs
- Crest
- Crimson
- Brands
- Organ stops
Dymchurch Wall-
A sea wall, built to keep the waves at bay and prevent flooding, in Dymchurch, a village in England.
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Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “In Romney Marsh”
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Form
"In Romney Marsh" contains seven quatrains (four-line stanzas), each with a very regular meter (iambic tetrameter) and rhyme scheme (ABAB). This dependable, predictable structure is typical of Victorian-era poetry. It also makes the poem both musical and memorable. The poem's steady sounds might subtly mirror the speaker's steady pace while walking around Romney Marsh.
The poem might also be considered a riff on a pastoral: poetry written in praise of the great outdoors. This poem, though, isn't just about the peaceful beauty of the sunset; it also speaks to nature's ferocity.
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Meter
"In Romney Marsh" uses iambic tetrameter. This means that each line contains four iambs, poetic feet that follow an unstressed-stressed pattern of syllables (da-DUM). Here's that meter in lines 3 and 4:
I saw | the yel- | ow sun-| light fall
On knolls | where Nor- | man church- | es stand.The meter pushes the poem forward at a steady pace, those bouncy iambs appropriate for a poem about a brisk walk on the windy English coast.
Metrical variations keep the poem from sounding too strict and also highlight important moments. For example, lines 20, 26, and 28 all open with a trochee: the opposite of an iamb, stressed-unstressed (DUM-da). Line 26 also contains a second trochee in its third foot, adding power to the word "crashed" and thus evoking the sheer force of the waves:
Flicker | and fade | from out | the west.
[...]
Streamed as | the waves | clashed on | the shore;
[...]
Pealing | again, | prolonged | the roar.These trochees add a little touch of disruption, hinting at nature's power. Nature disturbs the poem's meter, signaling, perhaps, that it also could bring that sea wall crashing down.
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Rhyme Scheme
"In Romney Marsh" uses a steady rhyme scheme. In each stanza, lines 1 and 2 rhyme with each other, as do lines 3 and 4:
ABAB CDCD
...and so on.
This alternating pattern is typical of Victorian-era poetry and also of John Davidson's work in particular. Here, the steady rhymes fill the poem with pleasant music. Fittingly for a poem about a brisk walk by the sea, the expectation—and satisfaction—of rhyme also provides forward momentum. The rhymes are all full, making the speaker sound confident and assured.
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“In Romney Marsh” Speaker
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The first-person speaker of "In Romney Marsh" is someone taking a later afternoon or early evening walk by the sea. It's fair to read the poem's speaker as a representation of John Davidson himself, but readers certainly don't have to do so.
Though the poem is about nature, all of its descriptions are filtered through the speaker's very human perspective: the speaker says "I went," "I saw," "I heard," "I came." That repeated "I" makes the speaker seem somewhat isolated; while they point out evidence of other people—the wires and old churches—they never actually mention seeing any other human beings. The speaker is a solitary figure contemplating their surroundings, seeming perhaps insignificant in light of nature's overwhelming power and beauty.
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“In Romney Marsh” Setting
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As the title suggests, this poem is set in Romney Marsh, an area on the southeast coast of England marked by views of the sea and the rolling hills of the nearby countryside.
The speaker's walk takes place on a windy day in the late afternoon or early evening, just as the sun starts to set. In many ways, the setting seems fierce and perhaps even a bit hostile: the wind whooshes through the landscape, telegraph wires ring "shrilly," and waves pound against the shore. At the same time, the setting is filled with immense beauty: the beach is the rich color of "saffron" and the sea spray glitters like diamonds. As the sun sets, the sky fills with ethereal shifting colors: purple, sapphire blue, rosy red, deep crimson. By the time the speaker's walk is over, night has fallen; the sky is awash with flickering stars, shimmering overhead "like flakes of silver fire."
This place isn't untouched: while there are no other people around (at least that the speaker mentions), there's clear evidence of humanity. The speaker begins their walk at "Dymchurch Wall," a manmade seawall, points out ancient "Norman churches," sees ships rocking in the distance, and, of course, twice calls out the shriek of the telegraph wires.
It's not clear, exactly, if this setting suggests harmony or discord between humanity and nature. While these pieces of civilization suggest that human beings have, in a way, tamed nature, the speaker's description of the ferocious sea and mesmerizing sky suggest that such security is an illusion.
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Literary and Historical Context of “In Romney Marsh”
Literary Context
John Davidson was a Scottish poet, playwright, and essayist who lived from 1857 to 1909. He struggled for success during his lifetime and supported his writing through work as a clerk and as a teacher.
"In Romney Marsh" was published in Davidson's 1895 collection Ballads and Songs. With its steady meter, rhyme scheme, and stanza structure, "In Romney Marsh" is typical of Victorian-era poetry. In its focus on the Kent coast, the poem also shares common ground with Matthew Arnold's (far more famous) poem "Dover Beach."
While "In Romney Marsh" sounds, on a formal level, like a typical Victorian poem, its atmosphere reflects the influence of the earlier Romantics: those poets who focused on nature's capacity to impress and intimidate. With its depiction of nature as both immensely beautiful and ferociously powerful, "In Romney Marsh" builds the Romantic idea of "the sublime": the feeling of awe and terror evoked when confronting the vast wonder of the natural world.
Historical Context
Davidson wrote "In Romney Marsh" at the tail end of the Victorian era, a time of significant social, political, and scientific upheaval across the British Empire and the world. Geological discoveries cast doubt over the timescale of the world's creation as described by the Bible, while new evolutionary theories unsettled the idea of humanity as the center of a universe created by God. Over the six decades of Queen Victoria's reign, Britain's primarily rural population also made an unprecedented shift to the cities as factory work outpaced farm work, and the invention of the steam engine resulted in new infrastructure like railroads, steamships, and factories. The telegraph and photograph were both invented in this era as well.
With its mention of "shrill" telegraph wires alongside the splendor of a seaside sunset, "In Romney Marsh" reflects the technological realities of Davidson's era and, perhaps, a longing for a simpler past.
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More “In Romney Marsh” Resources
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External Resources
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Ballads and Songs — Check out the full collection in which "In Romney Marsh" first appeared.
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Davidson's Literary Context — Dip into a great collection of Victorian-era poetry, selected by the Poetry Foundation.
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Romney Marsh — Check out the dramatic history of the poem's setting.
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