Old Ironsides
Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809-1894)
“Ay, tear her tattered ensign down!”
Ay, tear her tattered ensign down!
Long has it waved on high,
And many an eye has danced to see
That banner in the sky;
Beneath it rung the battle shout,
And burst the cannon’s roar; —
The meteor of the ocean air
Shall sweep the clouds no more.
Long has it waved on high,
And many an eye has danced to see
That banner in the sky;
Beneath it rung the battle shout,
And burst the cannon’s roar; —
The meteor of the ocean air
Shall sweep the clouds no more.
Her deck, once red with heroes’ blood,
Where knelt the vanquished foe,
When winds were hurrying o’er the flood,
And waves were white below,
No more shall feel the victor’s tread,
Or know the conquered knee; —
The harpies of the shore shall pluck
The eagle of the sea!
Where knelt the vanquished foe,
When winds were hurrying o’er the flood,
And waves were white below,
No more shall feel the victor’s tread,
Or know the conquered knee; —
The harpies of the shore shall pluck
The eagle of the sea!
Oh, better that her shattered hulk
Should sink beneath the wave;
Her thunders shook the mighty deep,
And there should be her grave;
Nail to the mast her holy flag,
Set every threadbare sail,
And give her to the god of storms,
The lightning and the gale!
Should sink beneath the wave;
Her thunders shook the mighty deep,
And there should be her grave;
Nail to the mast her holy flag,
Set every threadbare sail,
And give her to the god of storms,
The lightning and the gale!
Great post.
ReplyDeleteA bit of trivia. From Wikipedia:
"Primary materials used in her construction consisted of pine and oak, including southern live oak, which was cut and milled near St. Simons, Georgia."
I beat Brock to it!
Terry
Fla.
Glad you enjoyed it - was just wandering around U.S. history and found it! I saw one of Brock's videos this a.m. - he gave me a link to another in his comment section.Will look at that later tonight. Thanks for the info on her construction! She is a beauty!
DeleteYou have triggered a post. As you do.
ReplyDelete;-)
Thank you, kind sir! :o)
Delete