The Æneids of Virgil, Done into English Verse

William Morris's 1876 verse translation captures the Aeneid's raw power in nineteenth-century English poetry. The epic follows Aeneas, a man burdened with divine destiny: to flee the ashes of Troy, carry his father and son across the Mediterranean, and found a city that will become Rome. Morris renders Aeneas's harrowing sea voyage, his doomed love with Dido, his descent into the Underworld, and the brutal war in Italy with muscular, musical language that honors Virgil's grandeur while sounding distinctly Victorian. This is no dry academic exercise. It pulses with the violence of empire, the ache of exile, the terrible choice between personal desire and cosmic duty. The translation stands as a literary achievement in its own right, bringing one of Western literature's founding myths to life for a new age. Whether you come for the poetry, the politics, or the primal story of refugees building an empire, Morris gives you an Aeneid that feels urgent and alive.