The word invictus was with us long before Prince Harry founded his Invictus Games in 2014.
As noted by Chicago-based composer Stacy Garrop (b. 1969), during his long prison stay Nelson Mandela regularly recited the same-titled poem, which William Ernest Henley wrote in the hospital after surgery saved his right leg, his left having been amputated years earlier due to tubercular bone disease.
While the Latin word stands for unconquered, it’s also associated with determination, perseverance, resolve, and resilience.
Why exactly Garrop chose Henley’s sixteen-line poem as the inspiration for her piano concerto Invictus isn’t entirely clear, though the choice does dovetail with other works…

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