The Minstrel Boy
The Minstrel Boy to the war is gone;
In the ranks of death you will find him;
His father's sword he hath girded on,
And his wild harp slung behind him;
Land of Song! said the warrior bard,
Tho' all the world betrays thee,
One sword, at least, thy rights shall guard,
One faithful harp shall praise thee!
The Minstrel fell! But the foeman's chain
Could not bring that proud soul under;
The harp he lov'd ne'er spoke again,
For he tore its chords asunder;
And said, No chains shall sully thee,
Thou soul of love and brav'ry!
Thy songs were made for the pure and free,
They shall never sound in slavery!
I've been listening to Benjamin Britten's setting of this for days now: they sing a slightly throatier version in one of my favourite movies. More on Moore here.
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