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QOTD: Concord Hymn
On the 246th anniversary of the Battle of Lexington and Concord.
By the rude bridge that arched the flood,
Their flag to April’s breeze unfurled,
Here once the embattled farmers stood
And fired the shot heard round the world.
Their flag to April’s breeze unfurled,
Here once the embattled farmers stood
And fired the shot heard round the world.
The foe long since in silence slept;
Alike the conqueror silent sleeps;
And Time the ruined bridge has swept
Down the dark stream which seaward creeps
Alike the conqueror silent sleeps;
And Time the ruined bridge has swept
Down the dark stream which seaward creeps
On this green bank, by this soft stream,
We set today a votive stone;
That memory may their deed redeem,
When, like our sires, our sons are gone.
We set today a votive stone;
That memory may their deed redeem,
When, like our sires, our sons are gone.
Spirit, that made those heroes dare
To die, and leave their children free,
Bid Time and Nature gently spare
The shaft we raise to them and thee.
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
To die, and leave their children free,
Bid Time and Nature gently spare
The shaft we raise to them and thee.
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
The hymn was composed for the dedication of the Concord Battle Monument, upon which the following words appear:
Bill Coughlin
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Wonderful post, Percival. Thank you for reminding us and educating us.
Interesting that the Concord Hymn doesn’t use the hymnal stanza. Well, it is the long hymnal stanza, but you can’t properly sing it to “Amazing Grace.”
Emerson was idiosyncratic. to say the least. I found a Youtube of a choir performance to the tune of the Old 100th.
There are a lot of metrical inversions that make it hard to sing. Especially difficult are the inversions in the first foot of a stanza, which he does in half the stanzas.
Well, stanza to reason, I suppose.
“Stand your ground. Don’t fire unless fired upon, but if they mean to have a war, let it begin here.” – Capt. John Parker, Lexington Militia
Chills. Thank you.
I wonder what hymns our future generations will reflect upon hundreds of years from now.
First time I’ve ever been inspired to write fake woke poetry.
*Waits.*
All cussing in the April wind,
The rude mobs that burned the stores
Built a dark Antifastan.
Where free America was before.
The syllables don’t match. And it’s not woke poetry. I’m sure it’s the best I can do tonight.
Oh, wait. We can wokeify this and nudge the syllables in the right direction:
All maskless in the Covid wind,
Peaceful protesters burned the stores,
And built a bright Antifastan
Where
onceAmerica was before.Thanks. I hate it.
I memorized that poem in HS….but haven’t read it in years. In the Air Force, in my later years, I had to make many trips to Hanscom Field (via Boston). It is nestled between Lexington and Concord. We always went to a restaurant near Concord to eat crab and corn. I felt like I was on sacred ground. Today’s woke education won’t inspire the same feelings in young people today.
Accidental comment. Ignore.
From the Massachusetts National Guard website. Can there be any doubt what the Second Amendment writers meant by “militia” and “arms”?
[continues in comment 17]
[continued from comment 16]
It wasn’t until a year and three months later that the Declaration of Independence was signed. No wonder John Adams was such a pain in the neck in Philadelphia. :-)
Inspiring, Percival. Thank you for starting off my day so beautifully.
A reminder, in these days of life in the eternal “now” that we owe a debt to those who came before, and a responsibility to those who will follow us.
I don’t know how else to process, understand, redeem, or pass along any of that without a word used in this stanza: memory. I don’t know any other beings on earth who use memory the way humans do, or who are capable of learning from the mistakes of the past to build a better future. To do that, though, a person has to know his history. Erase that history, and what do you have left?
Perhaps we’re about to find out.
***
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I have no idea why Patriots’ Day (April 19) is not a national holiday.
I’m in pain.
I’m-a here all week, folks!
Again, I say: We are not worthy! ;)
A few pics in June of the rude bridge from different sides, the river it spans, and the general layout of the area. I believe the third pic shows the approximate British perspective.
Lovely pictures.
We should note that this is a replica, not the original bridge. As indicated in Emerson’s poem, the original bridge was long gone, even at the first centennial of the battle. My impression is that the current bridge is intended to be a good approximation of the bridge that existed at the time of the battle, but I haven’t been there.
Yes, there actually have been several bridges. The “original” one was built in 1760, and the one pictured above in 1956 (restored in 2005). For some reason, one of them was actually made of concrete, and sparked a movement to authenticity when it was replaced.
This is a painting on the National Guard’s website I cited earlier of the battle scene at the bridge. It shows the bridge planks pulled up by the British. It’s interesting that Buttrick told the Brits to stop removing the planks. Why did he think they might if he asked, I wonder:
In the final months before the 1945 Trinity atomic test, there was gallows humor among the scientists regarding its likely success. Here’s a stanza of The Ballad of Los Alamos–
From this crude lab that spawned the dud,
Their necks to Truman’s axe uncurled
Here, the embattled savants stood,
And fired the flop heard ’round the world.