Breitmann in Rome

By Charles G. Leland

    Dere’s lighds oopon de Appian,     Dey shine de road entlang;     Und from ein hundert tombs dere brumms     A wild Lateinisch song;     It rings from Nero’s goldnen haus;     Evoe! here he coom!     Fly oud, ye mönads, from your craves!     Hans Breitmann’s got to Rome!     For vhile de lamp holts oud to purn,     Or von goot shpark ish dere,     Dere’s hope for all of dem whose lives     Ish doun in Lempri?re.     Von real, shenuine heathen     Is coom at last to home;     Ye shleepin gotts, lift oop your hets     Hans Breitmann lifes in Rome!     Silenus mit der Hercules,     Dere-to der Maia’s sohn,     Ish all unite in Breitmann     To make a stunnin one.     Frau Venus mit de Bacchanals     Ist shmile to see him come;     De Vesta only toorn her pack     Vhen Breitmann kit to Rome.     He vented to de Vacuum,     Vhere de Bope ish keep his bulls;     Boot couldn’t vind dem, dough he heardt     Dat all de blace vas fools.     Dere ish here and dere some ochsen,     Right manivest I see;     Boot de bools all comes from Irish priests,     Said Breitemann, said he.     Und goin’ py de Vacuum,     Und passin’ troo de yard;     Mein Gott! how vas he stoomple, vhen     He see der Schweitzer guard,     Mit efery kinds of colors tresst,     Like shtreamers in de van.     “Hans Wurst ist stets ein Deutscher g’west,”     Das marked der Breitemann.     Und dus replied an guartsmann:     “I shoys to see you here:     Ich bin dem Bapst sei Laibgaertner.     Dazu a halberthier.     Dis purpur kleid of yellow-plue     Vas made, ash I hafe heard,     Py von Hans Michel Angelo,     Der tailor of our guard.     “Ve’re shoost von hoondert dirty strong,     Ve list for twenty year;     De serfice ist not pad, boot dis     Verdamm das Römisch bier!     For ven mit birra gazzosa     A maiden fills my glass,     She might ash vell gife gift ash say     ‘Feinslieb, ich schenk dir dass!’”     Und dus rebly der Breitmann:     “Un Tedesco Italianazato,     Ein Deutscher toorned Italian, ish     Il diavolo in carnato.     Your clothes are like infernal flames,     Dey burn my fery soul;     Boot to-night we’ll trink togedder nun     Lieb’landsmann lebe wohl!”     At de Sherman artisds’ festa,     Vhere all vas pright und fair,     ’Tvas fairer und more prighterfull     Vhen Breitmann enter dere.     Und der vaiters in de Greco     (So long he trinked und sot)     Vas called him L’Ubbriacone     ‘Tvas de name der Breitmann got.     He saw a veller in de shtreet,     Vot sell some friction-matches;     De kind dey call Infallible,     For dey blazes ven you scratches.     Dey dragged him off to brison,     Und tied him mit a rope;     For in Rome dere’s nix Infallible,     Dey said, excebt de Bope.     Hans see de crate Prometheus,     In Corsini’s gallery hang;     He tought apout de matches,     Und it made his heart go bang.     It’s risk to carry light apout,     Too cheap for efery man;     How de Lucifers is fallen!     Ita dixit Breitmann.     He got among de Bope’s Zouaves,     Dey trinked from morn to night;     Den frolicked colle belle     Ontil de shky crew pright.     It blease der Breitmann vonderfool,     And dus he often say:     “Zouaviter in modo ish     Der real Roman way.”     Boot oh, his heart burned vild mit fire,     His eyes gefilled mit tears,     At de gotts in efery bilder saal,     Mit goats’ legs, tails, und ears.     Und he sopped “Ach liebes Deutschland,     Bist here on every hand?     Was machst du Mephistophelés     So weit im Wälschen Land?”     Boot de wood-nymphs boorst out laughin,     Der Garten-gott dere to,     Und sait “Oldt Hans! vile you’re apout     Ve nefer can look blue.”     Den Pan blay on his Syrinx,     To de tune of Mary Blane,     “Don’t gry pecause ve’re out of town,     Ve’re coming pack again.     “Von day you got de yolk und vhite,     De next day only shells;     Von day dey holts a council,     Und de next day ‘someding else!’     Id’s bopes und kings, und gotts and dings,     Oopon dis eartly ball;     Boot for me id’s all von frolic,     Und a high oldt carnival!     “Rise oop, dou Odin-trafeler,     Und toorn dee to de Nort,     Wherefrom, as Bible dells dee,     Crate efil shall come fort.     Dere is mutterins in Ravenna,     Und ere long dere’ll come a turn,     A real hell-bender from de land     Of Dieterich von Bern.     “Und ven der Breitmann’s prototype,     Der Fictoor Manuel,     Cooms tromplin, tromplin troo de fern,     To give dis coontry hell.     Und ven in La Comarca,     Der is shtorm all in de air,     Dy Gotts vill gife dee vork, mein Sohn,     Hans Breitmann shall be dere!”     For a yar will nod be ofer     Pefore de Fräntsch will run,     Und de game at last be ented,     Und Italy pe won.     Und denn in roarin battle,     For hishtory so grand,     Dy banner’ll lead de Uhlan spears,     All in de Frankenland.

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Poem Details

Language: English
Keywords: Public Domain
Source: Public Domain Collection
Rights/Permissions: Public Domain

Analysis & Notes:
This poem is a narrative of Hans Breitmann's adventures and observations in Rome, written in a mix of English and German. The use of language is a critical element, creating a humorous tone while also setting a vivid cultural scene. The dialect and spelling mirror the accent and colloquialisms of a native German speaker speaking English, which brings authenticity to the character of Breitmann.

The poem is steeped in references to classical mythology, Roman history, and Catholicism, reflecting the protagonist's experiences and interpretations of Rome. For instance, the poet uses the allusion to the 'Bope's Zouaves,' the Pope's personal military, as a satirical commentary on religious politics. The recurring theme of the interplay and clash between different cultures, symbolized through Breitmann, a German in Rome, adds a layer of complexity to the poem.

The structure of the poem, a series of connected quatrains, allows for a smooth narrative flow, akin to a traveler's diary entries or an episodic tale. The humor, cultural references, and narrative style come together to create a vivid, engaging, and insightful commentary on culture, history, and human experiences.

Understanding Satirical Poetry

Satirical poems use wit, irony, exaggeration, and ridicule to expose folly—personal, social, or political. The aim isn’t just laughter: it’s critique that nudges readers toward insight or change.


Common characteristics of satirical poetry:

  • Targeted Critique: Focuses on specific behaviors, institutions, or ideas—often timely, sometimes timeless.
  • Tools of Irony: Uses sarcasm, parody, understatement, and hyperbole to sharpen the point.
  • Voice & Persona: Speakers may be unreliable or exaggerated to reveal contradictions and hypocrisy.
  • Form Flexibility: Appears in couplets, tercets, quatrains, blank verse, or free verse—music serves the mockery.
  • Moral Pressure: Beneath the humor lies ethical pressure—satire seeks reform, not merely amusement.
  • Public & Personal: Can lampoon public figures and trends or needle private vanities and everyday pretenses.

The best satire balances bite with craft: memorable lines that entertain while revealing the gap between how things are and how they ought to be.