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? asked in Arts & HumanitiesPoetry · 1 decade ago

Help please? With poetry :) 10 pts!?

I'm studying a poem by Margaret Junkin Preston and it's called 'A Bivouac In The Snow'. It's about the American Civil War (The War Between The States).

In the poem it makes a reference to a 'Xerxian army'.

Here is the whole stanza.

Round the bright blaze gather,

Heed not sleet or cold;

Ye are Spartan soldiers,

Stout and brave and bold.

Never Xerxian amy

Yet subdued a foe

Who asked but a blanket

On a bed of snow.

Does anyone know what the 'Xerxian army' is in reference to? I can't seem to find it anywhere..

Any help, even just ideas or thoughts would be good.

Thanks ;)

3 Answers

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  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago
    Favorite Answer

    This refers to the battle of Thermopylae between 300 Spartans and a Persian force led by Xerxes. The Persian invasion force was said to have numbered two million.

    More info on Wikipedia.

  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago

    Yes, the 'Xerxian Army' is the Persian Army led by Xerxes, as popularised (but not done, perhaps, full factual justice) in the movie, '300'. You're having trouble finding it because it's not really ever called the 'Xerxian' army.

    Perhaps Preston did because the poet wanted to give greater focus on the leader (rather than merely attributing the army to the relatively vague 'Persia'), as juxtaposed to the 'Spartan soldiers' (plural, see!). I can't be sure, though, I've never heard of the poem.

    Hope that was some help.

  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago

    Could the army be her family? You know the way families dont always get on and they may not have approved of what she was doing.

    I'm not sure, but it's an idea anyway!!!

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