What was the The Charge of the Light Brigade?
The Charge of the Light Brigade was a disastrous cavalry charge of just 670 men against 25000 Russian soldiers during the Crimean War, which saw heavy casualties.
When did Alfred Lord Tennyson write his famous poem?
He wrote it just six weeks after the battle in December 1854 when he was the Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom
It was published on 9 December 1854 in The Examiner.
This poem is a paean to the bravery of the ‘noble six hundred’ who obeyed their orders and rode into ‘the valley of death’. With its vivid language and biblical allusions, it brings home the soldiers’ grand sacrifice, as well as the comforting message of good overcoming evil. The fact that it still resonates with us today is a testament to Tennyson’s poetic power.
We named 'The Charge of the Light Brigade' one of the best war poems of all time
Has the poem ever been set to music?
Among the most famous musical responses to this poem is Max Steiner’s score to the 1936 film of the same name, which is considered one of the film composer’s finest achievements.
'The Charge of the Light Brigade' poem
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 dismayed?
Not though the soldier knew
Someone had blundered.
Theirs not to make reply,
Theirs not to reason why,
Theirs 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
Volleyed and thundered;
Stormed at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of hell
Rode the six hundred.
Flashed all their sabres bare,
Flashed as they turned in air
Sabring the gunners there,
Charging an army, while
All the world wondered.
Plunged in the battery-smoke
Right through the line they broke;
Cossack and Russian
Reeled from the sabre stroke
Shattered and sundered.
Then they rode back, but not
Not the six hundred.
Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon behind them
Volleyed and thundered;
Stormed at with shot and shell,
While horse and hero fell.
They that had fought so well
Came through 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.
Honour the charge they made!
Honour the Light Brigade,
Noble six hundred!
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