Witiza

King of the Wisi-Goths; dethroned and blinded by Roderick.

Theodofred.... son of King Chindasuintho; blinded by King Witiza.

Favila,

his brother; put to death by Witiza. The Wife of Favila, Witiza's adulterous mistress.

(These four persons are dead before the action of the poem commences.)

the last King of the Wisi-Goths: son of Theodofred.

the founder of the Spanish Monar

chy: son of Favila.

Roderick,.

Pelayo,...

Count Pedro

Count Eudon..

Alphonso,
Urban,

Romano,

Abdalaxix,
Egilona

Abulcacem

Alcahman

widow of Theodofred, and mother of Roderick.

powerful Lords in Cantabria.

Count Pedro's son, afterwards king.
Archbishop of Toledo.

a Monk of the Caulian Schools,
near Merida.

the Moorish Governor of Spain.
formerly the wife of Roderick,
now of Abdalaziz.

Ayub.. Ibrahim Magued

Moorish Chiefs.

Orpas

Sisibert.

Ebba..

brother to Witiza, and formerly Archbishop of Seville, now a renegade.

Sons of Witiza and of Pelayo's Smother.

Numacian. ... a renegade, governor of Gegio. Count Julian ... a powerful Lord among the Wisi

·Florinda...

Coths, how a renegade.

his daughter, violated by King Roderick.

daughter of the Governor of Auria. . Abbot of St. Felix.

Roderick's foster-father.
Count Pedro's wife.

The four latter persons are imaginary. All the others are mentioned in history. I ought, however, to observe, that Romano is a creature of monkish legends; that the name of Pelayo's sister has not been preserved; and that that of Roderick's mother, Ruscilo, has been altered to Rusilla, for the sake of euphony.

RODERICK,

THE LAST OF THE GOTHS.

I.

LONG had the crimes of Spain cried out to Heaven;

At length the measure of offence was full.
Count Julian call'd the invaders: not because
Inhuman Priests with unoffending blood
Had stain'd their country; not because a yoke
Of iron servitude oppress'd and gall'd
The children of the soil; a private wrong
Rous'd the remorseless Baron. Mad to wreak
His vengeance for his violated child

On Roderick's head, in evil hour for Spain,
For that unhappy daughter and himself,
Desperate apostate,.. on the Moors he call'd;
And like a cloud of locusts, whom the South
Wafts from the plains of wasted Africa,
The Musslemen upon Iberia's shore
Descend. A countless multitude they came;
Syrian, Moor, Saracen, Greek renegade,
Persian and Copt and Tatar, in one bond
Of erring faith conjoin'd, . . strong in the youth
And heat of zeal,.
...a dreadful brotherhood,
In whom all turbulent vices were let loose;
While Conscience, with their impious creed accurst,
Drunk, as with wine, had sanctified to them

All bloody, all abominable things.

A