Glory
My heart is filled with gladness when I see
Strong castles besieged, stockades broken and overwhelmed,
Many vassals struck down,
Horses of the dead and wounded roving at random.
And when battle is joined, let all men of good lineage
Think of naught but the breaking of heads and arms,
For it is better to die than be vanquished and live...
I tell you I have no such joy as when I hear the shout 'On! On!' from both sides and the neighing of riderless steeds,
And groans of 'Help me! Help me!'
And when I see both great and small
Fall in the ditches and on the grass
And see the dead transfixed by spear shafts!
Lords, mortgage your domains, castles, cities,
But never give up war!
- Bertrand de Born, nobleman and troubadour (d. circa 1202)
Dante portrayed de Born marching gladly into Hell, holding his own severed head before him as a lantern.
TITLE - "Glory"
WHERE - Siegesauele, German Monument to the Victory of 1867, damaged during World War II, Tiergarten, Berlin, Germany (2015/2019)