This England (slow reading) by William Shakespeare - British accent, read by Ben W Smith

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This is my reading of the stirring words of John of Gaunt AKA ‘This England’ by William Shakespeare (from Richard II). Stay tuned for more great poetic content!
Words:
This royal throne of kings, this scepter'd isle,
This earth of majesty, this seat of Mars,
This other Eden, demi-paradise,
This fortress built by Nature for herself
Against infection and the hand of war,
This happy breed of men, this little world,
This precious stone set in the silver sea,
Which serves it in the office of a wall,
Or as a moat defensive to a house,
Against the envy of less happier lands,
This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England.
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Hi, I'm Ben. I love selecting beautiful poems and bringing them alive to people with my voice, the music I love, and my own photography! If you're a poetry lover, why not subscribe to my channel - or you can find me here:
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Living My Best Life - • Living My Best Life
Heartbreak - • Heartbreak
Love and Romance - • Love and Romance
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[@simonhill4985]

Makes you proud to be English

[@benreadspoetry7958]

Thank you! 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

[@paulross8418]

Oh for England and St George.

[@deanbrown7318]

Beautiful

[@benreadspoetry7958]

Thanks Dean!

[@ernesthill4017]

Wonderful

[@benreadspoetry7958]

Thanks Ernest

[@laoshu8311]

The reading, music and image work very well together in this video.💙

[@benreadspoetry7958]

Thanks Laoshu!

[@abretusojos1766]

This is brilliant!!!

[@benreadspoetry7958]

Thank you so much!

[@TheConchologist]

Beautiful

[@benreadspoetry7958]

Thanks Jon!

[@TribulationNow]

Subbed :) Great reading. Thanks for the tweet! God bless ~ Cathy

[@benreadspoetry7958]

Thanks so much Cathy!

[@davidwipp1455]

For Jo

[@frank-caroltrott6131]

This is not the full quote, it has a sting in its tail which our current breed of right wing hooligans will love, it goes on to say, nothing is new, history is just on repeat:
"England, bound in with the triumphant sea
Whose rocky shore beats back the envious siege Of watery Neptune, is now bound in with shame,
With inky blots and rotten parchment bonds:
That England, that was wont to conquer others,
Hath made a shameful conquest of itself.
Ah, would the scandal vanish with my life,
How happy then were my ensuing death!"

[@benreadspoetry7958]

I’m well aware of that but the first part of it is often read in isolation and can be taken as so.

[@njd2342]

A dirge ...........needs to be more uplifting,,,,

[@benreadspoetry7958]

Er, thanks, but I don’t think it is and I don’t think it needs to be 😂

[@njd2342]

@@benreadspoetry7958 I was talking delivery rather than content Ben.🌹

[@benreadspoetry7958]

@@njd2342I know you were and I disagree with both your opinion of my reading and how you think it should be read.

[@njd2342]

@@benreadspoetry7958 Now where is my clarion...
Winds of the World, give answer! They are whimpering to and fro-
And what should they know of England who only England know?-
The poor little street-bred people that vapour and fume and brag,
They are lifting their heads in the stillness to yelp at the English Flag!

[@stevehughes5155]

Prefer Olivier’s

[@davidwipp1455]

For Jo