Looking for something, are we?

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Charge of the light brigade!






A piece of poetry right of out of my yester years, one of the very best. A classic from the hand of the great Lord Alfred Tennyson. This piece of writing also did something to inspire some little known band called Iron Maiden to write a not so well known song called "The Trooper". :D.



Half a league, half a league,
Half a league onward,
All in the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.
"Forward, the Light Brigade!
"Charge for the guns!" he said:
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.


"Forward, the Light Brigade!"
Was there a man dismay'd?
Not tho' the soldier knew
Someone had blunder'd:
Their's not to make reply,
Their's not to reason why,
Their's but to do and die:
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.



Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them
Volley'd and thunder'd;
Storm'd at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of Hell
Rode the six hundred.



Flash'd all their sabres bare,
Flash'd as they turn'd in air,
Sabring the gunners there,
Charging an army, while
All the world wonder'd:
Plunged in the battery-smoke
Right thro' the line they broke;
Cossack and Russian
Reel'd from the sabre stroke
Shatter'd and sunder'd.
Then they rode back, but not
Not the six hundred.


Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon behind them
Volley'd and thunder'd;
Storm'd at with shot and shell,
While horse and hero fell,
They that had fought so well
Came thro' the jaws of Death
Back from the mouth of Hell,
All that was left of them,
Left of six hundred.



When can their glory fade?
O the wild charge they made!
All the world wondered.
Honor the charge they made,
Honor the Light Brigade,
Noble six hundred!



P.S. :Found this website. Contains works from most of the great English poets ==> here

2 comments:

  1. aah... one of my all time fav poems...
    the battle of balaclava also inspired one of my all time fav war quotes
    "C'est magnifique, mais ce n'est pas la guerre: c'est de la folie".
    (This is magnificent, but it is not war; it is stupidity)
    - General Pierre Bosquet on the charge of the Light Brigade.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yeah it was the height of folly.......but then what if u are given orders.....and have been taught all ur life to disobey them is to dishonour oneself??

    ReplyDelete