He stood where morning took the flame And armor answered piece by piece Not like a man who dressed for life But one who fastened on the feast Bronze on chest and bronze on thigh Bronze that held the newborn sun Each buckle closed around a vow That once begun cannot be undone The king in bronze, the king in bronze He rose before the battle’s song Gold at the edge and fire below A man made tall by what he wore The king in bronze, the king in bronze He walked as if the day belonged But iron splendor never knows How near it stands to coming loss Around him moved the shield-borne men Tight with leather, dust, and will But he was set apart by gleam A summit standing cold and still Worked with figures, beasts, and signs His armor spoke before his mouth As though the forge had cast a fate And riveted it to his house He did not need to shout his name The metal said enough for all It flashed of power, rank, command Of those too high and doomed to fall Yet in that hour none dared to ask What price such brightness always brings For men will follow what is bright And call it destiny when it stings The king in bronze, the king in bronze He rose before the battle’s song Gold at the edge and fire below A man made tall by what he wore The king in bronze, the king in bronze He walked as if the day belonged But iron splendor never knows How near it stands to coming loss His horses stamped, the traces rang The spearshaft settled in his hand And all the watching shoreline wind Seemed briefly under his command A cloak may move, a plume may shine A breastplate catch the ruthless sky But none of these can shield a heart From what the day has kept nearby Still he stepped into the glare As kings and fools so often do Wrapped in labor, pride, and art In things men build to carry through And every polished plate declared That fear itself had been denied Though somewhere underneath the bronze A mortal pulse still had to hide The king in bronze, the king in bronze Now let the waiting plain respond Let hoof and wheel and spearpoint speak Let daylight test what splendor means The king in bronze, the king in bronze No metal keeps a kingdom whole It only gives the eye a flame While time keeps reaching for the soul
