| Poems by J.R.R. Tolkien | |
| Magna Dei Gloria (Warwick) | |
|---|---|
| Poem Information | |
| Other names | Micel is þæs Dryhtnes wuldor, Magna Dei Gloria, Magna dei gloria |
| Written | On or shortly after 8 January, 1914 |
| Revised | 22 April, 1915 |
| Published | The Collected Poems of J.R.R. Tolkien |
| Subject(s) | J.R.R. Tolkien and Edith Bratt |
Magna Dei Gloria (Warwick), also known as Micel is þæs Dryhtnes wuldor[1] or simply Magna Dei Gloria,[2] is a poem written by J.R.R. Tolkien on or after 8 January of 1914.[3]
Poem excerpt
Love hath breathed upon me and I live!
Love shineth in its deep.
Love hath lived within me and I breathe!
Lo, now I wake from sleep.[4]
Background
On 8 January of 1914, after "the Roman Catholic Church"[4] received Edith Bratt into Catholicism, Father Murphy formally betrothed her and J.R.R. Tolkien in Warwick.[3] Either on 8 January or later in January, J.R.R. Tolkien wrote the poem Magna Dei Gloria (Warwick) in celebration, inscribing a dedication "To EMB".[3] Sometime later, Tolkien wrote a new manuscript draft after striking through the old one, inscribing "1915 Ap[ril] 22" on it.[4]
In a list of poems marked "Attempts at Verse", Tolkien included the poem with the spelling Magna dei gloria and named it Micel is þæs Dryhtnes wuldor in Old English next to Darkness on the Road[5].[1] Tolkien later abandoned the second draft.[4] In September of 2024, the poem was published for the first time as entry 15 in The Collected Poems of J.R.R. Tolkien.[4] In their commentary, Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull explain that it is possible that Tolkien abandoned both versions because the way the poem conveyed "the strength of Tolkien's love for Edith and of his religious faith" was "so intensely and personal".[4]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 J.R.R. Tolkien; Christina Scull, Wayne G. Hammond (eds.), The Collected Poems of J.R.R. Tolkien, "Appendix III. Poem Lists", p. 1377 (list "A")
- ↑ Christina Scull and Wayne G. Hammond (2006), The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide: I. Chronology, "Poetry by J.R.R. Tolkien", "By Title", p. 850 (entry "Magna Dei Gloria. Unpublished.")
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Christina Scull and Wayne G. Hammond (2006), The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide: I. Chronology, p. 49 (entry "8 January 1914")
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 J.R.R. Tolkien; Christina Scull, Wayne G. Hammond (eds.), The Collected Poems of J.R.R. Tolkien, "15. Magni Dei Gloria (1914-15)", pp. 83-5
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien; Christina Scull, Wayne G. Hammond (eds.), The Collected Poems of J.R.R. Tolkien, "11. Darkness on the Road (1911-15)", pp. 57-8