Classic Poem

He ordered the poor to build castles.
This was very hard work.
The king was a tough man
And he took many gold coins from his people
And many more hundreds of pounds in silver …
This was most unfair, and he did not really need the money …
He marked out a huge area for deer, and made laws about it.
Anyone who killed a hart or a hind
Was to be blinded …
He loved the stags as dearly
As though he had been their father …
The rich complained and the poor wept.
But he was too merciless to care if everyone hated him.
And they just had to obey him.
Otherwise, they lost their lives and their lands
And their goods and their king's friendship.
Alas! that any man should behave in this proud way
And declare that he is so far above all other men!
May Almighty God show mercy on his soul
And pardon him his sins.