Fugitives by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

This is a fragment from Longfellow's verse drama Judas Maccabaeus (1872), rather than a self-contained lyric poem. In the drama, these lines are delivered by a group of Jewish survivors who meet Judas Maccabaeus and proclaim themselves his companions in exile. Longfellow released excerpts like this one with individual titles, which is why it is often seen as a short poem.

Judas Maccabaeus was a Jewish priest and military leader who spearheaded the revolt against the Seleucid Empire around 167 BCE. The Seleucid king Antiochus IV had prohibited Jewish worship and defiled the Temple in Jerusalem. Maccabaeus and his brothers launched a guerrilla resistance, ultimately reclaiming and rededicating the Temple — the event celebrated during Hanukkah. His significance lies in being both a historical figure and a symbol of resilience in the face of exile and loss.

It describes Jerusalem after Antiochus IV set up a pagan altar in the Temple, sacrificed pigs there—an act that deliberately desecrated Jewish law—and banned Jewish religious practices. For the speakers, the city isn't just a place of danger; it's spiritually tainted. Escaping it is as much an act of faith as it is a matter of survival.

They see a clear connection between their situation and that of Maccabaeus. Like him, they are outcasts working beyond the occupied city, battling from the wilderness. When they say "as thou art," they're not trying to flatter him—they're expressing a sense of belonging. It’s their way of saying: we get your struggles because we’re living through them as well.

The main themes are exile, identity, and sorrow. The speakers fully define themselves by their losses and the places they can no longer return to. Yet, there's also a hint of courage — they have survived and are standing before a resistance leader, suggesting they plan to continue the fight.

It has a spiritual aspect without being explicitly devotional. The "polluted city" terminology is rooted in Jewish ideas of ritual impurity, and the broader historical background focuses on the endurance of Jewish religious traditions. However, the poem feels more like a heartfelt expression of dislocation rather than a prayer or a display of faith.

Longfellow was consistently captivated by tales of moral courage and historical conflict throughout his career, and the Maccabean Revolt provided both in spades. He had a deep and enduring interest in the religious histories of various traditions. When he wrote Judas Maccabaeus in 1872, toward the end of his life, he was engaging with a tradition of verse drama that allowed him to delve into the lives of historical figures using the expressive power of poetry rather than simply recounting events.