''The Vision of Don Roderick'' is a poem in

Spenserian stanza The Spenserian stanza is a fixed verse form invented by Edmund Spenser for his epic poem ''The Faerie Queene'' (1590–96). Each stanza contains nine lines in total: eight lines in iambic pentameter followed by a single ' alexandrine' line in iamb ...

s by Sir

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European literature, European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'' (18 ...

, published in 1811. It celebrated the recent victories of the

Duke of Wellington Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they ar ...

during the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1808–1814) was fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Kingdom of Portugal, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French ...

, and proceeds of its sale were to raise funds for Portugal.

Background

''The Vision of Don Roderick'' is based on an account given by

Ginés Pérez de Hita Ginés Pérez de Hita (1544? – 1619?) was a Spanish novelist and poet, born at Mula ( Murcia) about the middle of the 16th century. It is likely that he joined the campaign against the "Moriscos" in the Alpujarra in 1560. ''Guerras civile ...

of a legendary consultation of an

oracle An oracle is a person or thing considered to provide insight, wise counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. If done through occultic means, it is a form of divination. Descript ...

by the last

Visigoth The Visigoths (; ) were a Germanic people united under the rule of a king and living within the Roman Empire during late antiquity. The Visigoths first appeared in the Balkans, as a Roman-allied barbarian military group united under the comman ...

ic King of Spain,

Roderic Roderic (also spelled Ruderic, Roderik, Roderich, or Roderick; Spanish language, Spanish and , ; died 711) was the Visigoths, Visigothic king in Hispania between 710 and 711. He is well known as "the last king of the Goths". He is actually an ex ...

, around 711: this had been a favourite of Scott's since his boyhood when he had based a four-book poem, ''The Conquest of Granada'', on it. On 30 April 1811 Scott wrote from Ashiestiel to Lady Abercorn that he had retired to the country to compose a poem in aid of "the suffering Portuguese", and that James Ballantyne and his brother had generously promised him a hundred guineas (£105). A week later he was busy with the composition and planned on completion to send the manuscript to William Erskine for vetting before it was printed. On 12 May he was able to inform James Ballantyne: "A great deal of the poem is at least in ''dead'' colours as the painters say for it wants much touching", and the correction was almost complete by the 25th. Overall, Scott seems to have found the task of composition rather burdensome.

Summary

Don Roderick, camped outside of Toledo, ponders the outcome of his campaign against the

Moors The term Moor is an Endonym and exonym, exonym used in European languages to designate the Muslims, Muslim populations of North Africa (the Maghreb) and the Iberian Peninsula (particularly al-Andalus) during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a s ...

. After

confession A confession is a statement – made by a person or by a group of people – acknowledging some personal fact that the person (or the group) would ostensibly prefer to keep hidden. The term presumes that the speaker is providing information that ...

, he demands that the

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Minister (Christianity), Christian clergy who is an Ordinary (church officer), ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which me ...

lead him to a certain sealed chamber, known to be enchanted, which according to legend would reveal the future — but only to the "last" King of Spain. When the chamber is opened, the king and prelate find themselves in a vast marble hall, with two giant bronze statues standing on either side. The left-hand giant carries a scythe and an hourglass, and the right-hand giant carries a mace. The hourglass runs out almost immediately after their entrance, and the other giant turns and demolishes the far wall with his mace, revealing a magic panorama. The panorama depicts various phases in the future of Spain: first, the conquest by the Moors; second, the

Spanish Inquisition The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition () was established in 1478 by the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, Catholic Monarchs, King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile and lasted until 1834. It began toward the end of ...

; third, the conquest by

Napoleon I of France Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

, and the arrival of British forces to liberate the country. Such sweep fits with Scott's political agenda.

Editions

''The Vision of Don Roderick'' was published on 2 July 1811 in Edinburgh by John Ballantyne and Co., and later in the month in London by

Longman Longman, also known as Pearson Longman, is a publisher, publishing company founded in 1724 in London, England, which is owned by Pearson PLC. Since 1968, Longman has been used primarily as an imprint by Pearson's Schools business. The Longman ...

, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown. The price was 15''s'' (75p). A second edition with the same date was published on 1 January 1812 in Edinburgh, and two further editions appeared in 1815 and 1821. A critical edition is due to appear in Volume 5 of The Edinburgh Edition of Walter Scott's Poetry published by Edinburgh University Press.

Reception

''Don Roderick'' was generally reckoned greatly inferior to its predecessors by most reviewers. Francis Jeffrey in ''The

Edinburgh Review The ''Edinburgh Review'' is the title of four distinct intellectual and cultural magazines. The best known, longest-lasting, and most influential of the four was the third, which was published regularly from 1802 to 1929. ''Edinburgh Review'', ...

'' is typical with his verdict that Scott 'has fewer new images than in his other poetry,—his tone is less natural and varied,—and he moves, upon the whole, with a slower and more laborious pace'.''The Edinburgh Review'', 18 (August 1811), 379‒92 (383). The general conception of the poem was regarded as unfortunate, though there was some praise for Scott's aim to produce an elevated national work.

References

External links

First edition
by Google Books

on the poem at the website of the University of Edinburgh Library {{DEFAULTSORT:Vision of Don Roderick Poetry by Walter Scott 1811 poems Works set in the 8th century Castilla–La Mancha in fiction Historical poems Cultural depictions of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington