1. The Destruction of Sennacherib by Lord Byron
LO: To know the themes, language, form & structure of the poem
Starter Task
Read the overview opposite and the poem in your anthology closely
The Destruction of Sennacherib is a short narrative poem retelling a Biblical story from the Old Testament (2 Kings, chapter 19) in which God destroys King Sennacherib’s Assyrian army as they attack the holy city of Jerusalem. It is probably as well-known for the way in which the poem is constructed as it is for its subject matter.
The speaker sets out events in chronological order. He seems impressed by the might and splendour of the Assyrian army when describing their appearance in the first six lines. However, halfway through the second stanza comes a turning point as he realises the Assyrians’ strength is short-lived. He then goes on to tell how the Angel of Death has passed through their camp wiping them out. Although the Assyrians may have been mighty, the speaker realises that the power of God is even mightier.

2. The Destruction of Sennacherib by Lord Byron
LO: To know the themes, language, form & structure of the poem
Context
Byron was one of the leading poets of a group known as the Romantics. Romanticism was a general artistic movement (literature, music, the visual arts, etc.) which dominated European culture from the last part of the 18th century until the mid-19th century. Romanticism had many key features, including:
an interest in the cultures and history of the Middle East and Far East
the importance of liberty and freedom
a fascination with mystical and supernatural events
All of these are features of Byron’s poem.
The poem was originally published as part of a collection called Hebrew Melodies in April This was a time when the subject of war was of great concern throughout Europe. The wars against Napoleon had been going on for sixteen years and were quickly reaching a climax. The Battle of Waterloo, which ended the war, took place just two months after the poem’s publication. Just like Sennacherib and the Assyrians in the poem, Napoleon and the French had carved out a huge empire and nothing seemed capable of stopping them. It is estimated that the war resulted in approximately million casualties. It must have seemed to Byron’s original readers that only a miracle could stop the destruction.

3. The Destruction of Sennacherib by Lord Byron
LO: To know the themes, language, form & structure of the poem
Death
war always brings death and destruction. The planned Assyrian attack is halted by the death of the soldiers and their horses.
The effects of death are ongoing. In the Assyrian capital Ashur, the wives of the soldiers mourn the loss of their husbands.
Themes
Last stanza:
   And the widows of Ashur are loud in their wail,
And the idols are broke in the temple of Baal;
And the might of the Gentile, unsmote by the sword,
Hath melted like snow in the glance of the Lord!
God’s Power
God is shown to have the power to protect his chosen people at a specific time of need. His ongoing power is demonstrated through the references to nature.
The Assyrian’s aggressive might is nothing compared to God’s power. God merely has to ‘glance’ at the enemy to destroy them. ‘Melted like snow’ is used to highlight how easily this destruction is achieved.

4. The Destruction of Sennacherib by Lord Byron
LO: To know the themes, language, form & structure of the poem
Now watch this video about the poem.
Play close attention to what the woman is saying in her analysis of the poem – you will need to make notes on this later

5. The Destruction of Sennacherib by Lord Byron
LO: To know the themes, language, form & structure of the poem
The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold,
And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold;
And the sheen of their spears was like stars on the sea,
When the blue wave rolls nightly on deep Galilee.
   Like the leaves of the forest when Summer is green,
That host with their banners at sunset were seen:
Like the leaves of the forest when Autumn hath blown,
That host on the morrow lay withered and strown.
   For the Angel of Death spread his wings on the blast,
And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed;
And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill,
And their hearts but once heaved, and for ever grew still!
And there lay the steed with his nostril all wide,
But through it there rolled not the breath of his pride;
And the foam of his gasping lay white on the turf,
And cold as the spray of the rock-beating surf.
   And there lay the rider distorted and pale,
With the dew on his brow, and the rust on his mail:
And the tents were all silent, the banners alone,
The lances unlifted, the trumpet unblown.
   And the widows of Ashur are loud in their wail,
And the idols are broke in the temple of Baal;
And the might of the Gentile, unsmote by the sword,
Hath melted like snow in the glance of the Lord!
Form & Structure
6 stanzas
Each stanza has 4 lines (each stanza is a quatrain)
Each stanza consists of a pair of rhyming couplets (AABB)
This strong rhythm creates a lively and vibrant poem which contrasts with the tragedy within the poem
Also represents the contrast between a ‘great’ army and the tragedy of war

6. The Destruction of Sennacherib by Lord Byron
LO: To know the themes, language, form & structure of the poem
Regular and strong rhythm
Echoes the hoof beats of the horses as they charge
Rhyming couplets AA BB
The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold,
And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold;
And the sheen of their spears was like stars on the sea,
When the blue wave rolls nightly on deep Galilee.
   Like the leaves of the forest when Summer is green,
That host with their banners at sunset were seen:
Like the leaves of the forest when Autumn hath blown,
That host on the morrow lay withered and strown.
   For the Angel of Death spread his wings on the blast,
And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed;
And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill,
And their hearts but once heaved, and for ever grew still!
Punctuation at the end of each line creates a stop.
However, more than half of the lines in the poem begin with ‘And’.
This drives the story forward
Like the soldiers charging forward

7. The Destruction of Sennacherib by Lord Byron
LO: To know the themes, language, form & structure of the poem
The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold,
And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold;
And the sheen of their spears was like stars on the sea,
When the blue wave rolls nightly on deep Galilee.
   Like the leaves of the forest when Summer is green,
That host with their banners at sunset were seen:
Like the leaves of the forest when Autumn hath blown,
That host on the morrow lay wither’d and strown.
   For the Angel of Death spread his wings on the blast,
And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed;
And the eyes of the sleepers wax’d deadly and chill,
And their hearts but once heaved, and for ever grew still!
And there lay the steed with his nostril all wide,
But through it there rolled not the breath of his pride;
And the foam of his gasping lay white on the turf,
And cold as the spray of the rock-beating surf.
   And there lay the rider distorted and pale,
With the dew on his brow, and the rust on his mail:
And the tents were all silent, the banners alone,
The lances unlifted, the trumpet unblown.
   And the widows of Ashur are loud in their wail,
And the idols are broke in the temple of Baal;
And the might of the Gentile, unsmote by the sword,
Hath melted like snow in the glance of the Lord!
Language
There is lots of archaic (old) language – words and word order are old-fashioned
Echoes the biblical origins of this story

8. The Destruction of Sennacherib by Lord Byron
LO: To know the themes, language, form & structure of the poem
The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold,
And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold;
And the sheen of their spears was like stars on the sea,
When the blue wave rolls nightly on deep Galilee.
   Like the leaves of the forest when Summer is green,
That host with their banners at sunset were seen:
Like the leaves of the forest when Autumn hath blown,
That host on the morrow lay wither’d and strown.
   For the Angel of Death spread his wings on the blast,
And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed;
And the eyes of the sleepers wax’d deadly and chill,
And their hearts but once heaved, and for ever grew still!
Similes
Comparing the army – both alive and dead - to nature
Suggests that, while mankind is destroyed, nature will endure
Alliteration
Repetition of the ‘s’ sound
Suggests evil
Repetition of the ‘h’ sound
Slows down our reading as the moment of death occurs

9. The Destruction of Sennacherib by Lord Byron
LO: To know the themes, language, form & structure of the poem
Plenary
Now add any additional notes you remember from the video you watched earlier.