Chaptheir and verse
Charles honours Wordsworth by reading ‘moving and special’ poem
PRINCE Charles paid tribute to the “extraordinary power” of William Wordsworth as he marked the 250th anniversary of the poet’s birth.
The Prince of Wales yesterday read an extract from Tintern Abbey, one of the great Romantic poet’s finest works for Radio 4’s Today Programme. Charles, 71, is a patron of The Wordsworth Trust and recorded his reading this week at Birkhall, his home in Scotland.
The heir was last week given the all clear after having coronavirus and
Prince Charles read Wordsworth spending time in self-isolation. Royal sources told how Charles wanted to “remind listeners of the beauty of nature” during these uncertain times.
He praised Wordsworth’s ability to capture the “power of the landscape to move us” and said that, for this reason, it is important landscapes are “preserved”.
The Prince said: “I chose this poem by Wordsworth because, funnily enough, I know that rather wonderful area around Tintern Abbey, up the Wye Valley.
“So, this poem, I found ends in this moving and special way, so it’s one of my favourites.”
William Wordsworth was born in Cumbria in 1770 and became a celebrated English Romantic poet. He was made Poet Laureate in 1843 and held the position until his death aged 80 in 1850.
Five years have past; summers, with the length
Of five long winters! and again I hear
These waters, rolling from their mountain-springs
With a soft inland murmur. Once again
Do I behold these steep and lofty cliffs,
That on a wild secluded scene impress
Thoughts of more deep seclu sion; and connect
The landscape with the quiet of the sky. five