Alexander Brome: Collected Lyrics
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Public-domain lyrics

Upon Ambition

Alexander Brome

“Upon Ambition” as printed in Rump Songs (1662).

Alexander Brome: Collected Lyrics Text 69 1662 · historical text
Public domainPolitical songHistorical song
Complete public-domain lyrics

This text comes from Rump Songs, a historical songbook transcribed on Wikisource and reproduced from the pinned revision linked below.

Verse 1

How uncertain is the State

Of that greatnesse we adore,

When Ambitiously we sore,

And have ta’en the glorious height,

’Tis but Ruine gilded o’re,

To enslave us to our fate,

Whose false Delight is easier got, then kept,

Content ne’er on its gaudy Pillow slept.

Verse 2

Then how fondly do we try,

With such superstitious care,

To build Fabricks in the Ayr?

Or seek safety in that sky,

Where no Stars but Meteors are,

That portend a ruine nigh?

And having reacht the object of our ayme,

We find it but a Pyramid of flame.

Credits

Written by Alexander Brome

Words by Alexander Brome. Historical text published in Rump Songs (1662); public domain. No claim to a modern recording or arrangement.

Source & text edition

Rump Songs (1662), “Upon Ambition”

This 1662 collection (Rump: or an Exact Collection of the Choycest Poems and Songs Relating to the Late Times, 1639-1661) is credited to Alexander Brome (died 1666); every contributor died more than 330 years ago, so the text is in the public domain worldwide, and the edition carries a Wikisource PD-old determination.

How to read this historical text and its source

Read the source on Wikisource

View copyright evidence · Transcription terms (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Retrieved 2026-10-26. Line spacing and section labels are adapted for reading. The displayed text follows the linked edition. Editorial notes and abstract artwork are by 52lyrics.
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