1899-1902 (Cavatina Sequence) (In Answer To A. E. Housman)
From the Orange Free State to the Transvaal
farms and towns burn,
from concentration camps women, children,
do not return,
up in the hillocks European farmers fight;
not taciturn
Emily Hobhouse does expose some ills,
many innocents the British do kill.
Hard driven men who read the word of God
fight very brave,
hear the British sing their God save their Queen;
they cannot save
some twenty thousand women and children,
but they do crave
for freedom and for a place of their own,
are forced to swear loyal to the crown.
After that bitter war they have to sing
'God save the queen, '
return to decimated farms and towns,
their pain unseen,
impoverished they make a living,
for peace are keen;
to today their kinsmen do not forget,
in God's record His punishment is set.
poem by Gert Strydom
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Related quotes
The Anglo Boer war
When that wimp of a Englishman
called Cecil John Rhodes
decided that he wanted gold,
that the diamonds in his pockets
was not enough
he wanted to see that British Union Jack flutter,
over the whole of Southern Africa
to his queen he went
to enchant her patriotic soul
to claim the Orange Free State
and Transvaal Republics as British territories
to sent three thousand
Christian farmers to their deaths,
to burn farmsteads down to the ground,
to throw salt in the lands,
to slaughter every animal there,
to murder twenty thousand women
and children
in concentration camps
and to loose twenty eight thousand
of the queen’s own as killed, as dead
shot through the heart, shot through the head.
[Note: My own great grandmother died in a British concentration camp and my great grandfather was sent by the British to St. Helena as a prisoner of war and as a result of this, my grandfather grew up in a orphanage.]
poem by Gert Strydom
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Queen Victoria
When little Victoria played
at the lake in Claremont Gardens
as a child long before she became queen,
did she capture a large swallowtail butterfly
from a reed and then pulled off its golden
and black veined wings
or was she then, innocent of such a thing?
When little Victoria played
at the lake in Claremont Gardens
as a child long before she became queen,
did she trample the flowers
pulling the white and yellow water lilies
out of the lake
or was she then, innocent of such a thing?
When little Victoria became a powerful queen
did her government go to war
against the Orange Free State
and Transvaal Republics?
Did her soldiers force women and children
into concentration camps
where twenty thousand died?
Did her soldiers kill three thousand
Christian farmers after demolishing their farms?
And did her government loose
twenty eight thousand soldiers
of its own?
Or was she then, innocent of such things?
[Note: My own great grandmother died in a British concentration camp and my great grandfather was sent by the British to St. Helena as a prisoner of war and as a result of this, my grandfather(Gert Strydom) grew up in a orphanage.]
poem by Gert Strydom
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The British descended
The British descended
on the Transvaal and Orange Free State
from their island
on the other side of the sea
and in thousands
they came to ruin the land.
The British descended
on the Transvaal and Orange Free State
and from the sea they came
and an entire empire
send its soldiers to destroy,
to pillage and scorch the earth,
to rape, and imprison
the women and children
of the Afrikaner nation.
My great grandfathers rode on horseback to war,
with Christiaan De Wet, Cronje
and De La Rey
and they fought hard pressed,
to drive the British
and soldiers from all her colonies away.
My great grandfathers rode on horseback to war
and landed in prisoner of war camps in St. Helena
and although the second Anglo-Boer war was lost
and the Afrikaner nation paid the highest cost
in the destruction of the land,
the death of men
and the murder of innocent women and children,
a time came
that once more we were free.
My great grandfathers rode on horseback to war,
but one was from and with the enemy
and a highlander was he
and a more decent man
is still hard to find
and one that hated the English
for the dreadfull things that they did,
at times I see the restored Martini Henri rifles
taken from the British
during that bitter war
and the legacy and great spirit,
of my great grandfathers
still stays with me.
poem by Gert Strydom
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God of our fathers
With their eyes set on the distance
our fathers
trekked into their promised land
as children of the God
of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
After the murders on Piet Retief and his men
our fathers made a holy covenant
with the almighty God
to rescue them in their laager at Blood River
against a very big army
of about twenty thousand Zulus.
With their victory
they did not go forth
to wipe out every single Zulu,
rather with the Bible in the hand
they wanted to teach
other people about God.
When the Xhosas slaughtered
almost all their livestock,
were burning their own harvests
believing the medium Nonqawuse
that ancestral spirits
will rise to wipe out the white man
and thousands of them
were dying from starvation
our fathers reached out their hands
and in neighbourly love gave food to those people,
doing what they could
to try and save them.
When droughts, illness of the livestock,
locusts were ravaging, even when the British Empire
came to take the mineral treasures,
were burning down farms and towns,
were murdering women and children
in concentration camps
our fathers went on their knees,
placing their destiny in the hands
of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob
knowing that his shadow was falling over them,
that He keeps account
was folding His Godly hand over them
l’Envoi
and now that thousands of farmers
are being killed on their farms
are being tortured, murdered and robbed
Afrikaners with qualifications
and experience, even artisans
are unemployed on the street,
people in cities
are hijacked, robbed and raped
I am praying to the God
of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
to keep His hand over us,
to draws His laager
around the lives and property
of everyone that comes to Him,
to free us from this oppression.
poem by Gert Strydom
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God Save Us
As recorded by bill elliot and the elastic oz band
Oh, God save us one and all,
Oh, God save us from defeat,
Oh, God save us from the war.
(yeah)
Oh, God save us on the street.
Yeah, lets fight for people rights,
(pick your nose and eat it too)
Lets fight for freedom
(right on)
Yeah, lets fight for mickey mouse
Yeah, lets fight for freedom.
Oh, God save us one and all,
Oh, God save us from defeat,
Oh, God save us from the war.
Oh, God save us on the street.
Yeah, lets fight for childrens right
Yeah, lets fight for freedom.
Yeah, lets stop the go insane,
Yeah, lets fight for freedom.
Oh, God save us one and all,
Oh, God save us from defeat,
Oh, God save us from the war.
Oh, God save us on the street.
Oh, God save us from defeat,
(yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
Oh, God save us from the sea
Oh, God save us from the queen,
(yeah, yeah, alright, right on, give it onto duke)
song performed by by Yoko Ono
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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God Save Us
As recorded by bill elliot and the elastic oz band
Oh, God save us one and all,
Oh, God save us from defeat,
Oh, God save us from the war.
(yeah)
Oh, God save us on the street.
Yeah, lets fight for people rights,
(pick your nose and eat it too)
Lets fight for freedom
(right on)
Yeah, lets fight for mickey mouse
Yeah, lets fight for freedom.
Oh, God save us one and all,
Oh, God save us from defeat,
Oh, God save us from the war.
Oh, God save us on the street.
Yeah, lets fight for childrens right
Yeah, lets fight for freedom.
Yeah, lets stop the go insane,
Yeah, lets fight for freedom.
Oh, God save us one and all,
Oh, God save us from defeat,
Oh, God save us from the war.
Oh, God save us on the street.
Oh, God save us from defeat,
(yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
Oh, God save us from the sea
Oh, God save us from the queen,
(yeah, yeah, alright, right on, give it onto duke)
song performed by by Yoko Ono
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Blockhouses had been erected right over the country
Blockhouses had been erected right over the country,
farms had been entered and burnt to the ground,
Livestock and animals had been slaughtered
and women and children were rounded up
and interned into death camps.
Young boys
were set against white walls
and firing squads
was set against them
and a super power
clenched its fist around this country
and stood gigantic
against every Boer farmer.
l’Envoi
That time will be forever black
in history
with the misdeeds of the British
that is well known
and the ruination of a nation, arousing from it
where women and children perished as targets
at the commands of Horatio Herbert Kitchener.
[Note: My own great grandmother died in a British concentration camp and my great grandfather was sent by the British to St. Helena as a prisoner of war and as a result of this, my grandfather(Gert Strydom) grew up in a orphanage.]
poem by Gert Strydom
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1887
From Clee to heaven the beacon burns,
The shires have seen it plain,
From north and south the sign returns
And beacons burn again.
Look left, look right, the hills are bright,
The dales are light between,
Because 'tis fifty years to-night
That God has saved the Queen.
Now, when the flame they watch not towers
About the soil they trod,
Lads, we'll remember friends of ours
Who shared the work with God.
To skies that knit their heartstrings right,
To fields that bred them brave,
The saviours come not home to-night:
Themselves they could not save.
It dawns in Asia, tombstones show
And Shropshire names are read;
And the Nile spills his overflow
Beside the Severn's dead.
We pledge in peace by farm and town
The Queen they served in war,
And fire the beacons up and down
The land they perished for.
"God save the Queen" we living sing,
From height to height 'tis heard;
And with the rest your voices ring,
Lads of the Fifty-third.
Oh, God will save her, fear you not:
Be you the men you've been,
Get you the sons your fathers got,
And God will save the Queen.
poem by Alfred Edward Housman
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Unrest in the Kingdom of London Dairy? (Sung God Save the Queen or My Country tis of Thee)
The real verses The parody
God save our gracious Queen God save our Dairy Queen
Long live our noble Queen, No fancy shakes to be seen,
God save the Queen: God save the Queen
Send her victorious, Ice cream floats and fries,
Happy and glorious, Cheeseburgers you should try
Long to reign over us: Blizzards and Malts oh my
God save the Queen. God save the Queen
O Lord, our God, arise, DQ cakes, what’s at stake,
Scatter thine enemies, Chili dogs, Strawberry Cheesequakes
And make them fall: And make a small dipped cone
Confound their politics, Blizzards as Snickers or Oreos
Frustrate their knavish tricks, Chocolate Cookie Dough
On thee our hopes we fix: Let’s have cappuccino
God save us all. God we haven’t grown
Thy choicest gifts in store, Your choicest treats in store
On her be pleased to pour; You can’t each much more
Long may she reign: Our tables are clean
May she defend our laws, Sundaes you can get any day
And ever give us cause Brownie earthquakes if you pay
To sing with heart and voice And some Peanut Butter Parfaits
God save the Queen. God save the Queen
(2-29-2008)
poem by Joe Rosochacki
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From pools of blood
From pools of blood bushes, trees
and aloes grow in the veldt
where British soldiers
fired on my countrymen
and some bayoneted them.
Concentration camps where twenty thousand
women and children died without dignity
at the hand of foreigners,
who claimed to be fellow Christians
are now covered with grass
and that past are being blotted out
as if the misery, the indignity,
the mass murder
never happened
and great Queen Victoria
is still dignified
and still I hold Great Britain responsible
for the murder of my great grand mother,
for the destruction
of my great grand father’s farm,
for the seizure
of my other great grand father’s property,
for sending him to St. Helena
as a prisoner of war,
for invading my country
for making profit from the minerals
and the quarter Scotsman in me
together with my three quarters Afrikaner parts
forever wants to be free
from the enslavement
which that foreign nation brought.
[Note: My own great grandmother died in a British concentration camp and my great grandfather was sent by the British to St. Helena as a prisoner of war and as a result of this, my grandfather(Gert Strydom) grew up in a orphanage.]
poem by Gert Strydom
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A New National Anthem
I.
God prosper, speed,and save,
God raise from England’s grave
Her murdered Queen!
Pave with swift victory
The steps of Liberty,
Whom Britons own to be
Immortal Queen.
II.
See, she comes throned on high,
On swift Eternity!
God save the Queen!
Millions on millions wait,
Firm, rapid, and elate,
On her majestic state!
God save the Queen!
III.
She is Thine own pure soul
Moulding the mighty whole,--
God save the Queen!
She is Thine own deep love
Rained down from Heaven above,--
Wherever she rest or move,
God save our Queen!
IV.
‘Wilder her enemies
In their own dark disguise,--
God save our Queen!
All earthly things that dare
Her sacred name to bear,
Strip them, as kings are, bare;
God save the Queen!
V.
Be her eternal throne
Built in our hearts alone--
God save the Queen!
Let the oppressor hold
Canopied seats of gold;
She sits enthroned of old
O’er our hearts Queen.
VI.
Lips touched by seraphim
Breathe out the choral hymn
‘God save the Queen!’
Sweet as if angels sang,
Loud as that trumpet’s clang
Wakening the world’s dead gang,--
God save the Queen!
poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley
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Be For Thy
Love thy songs
Love thy soil
Love thy solitude
Have the tribute to pay
Have the praise to sing
Have the lamentation to cry
Be thy son
Be thy worthy
Be thy dutiful
Fight for thy land
Fight for thy freedom
Fight for thy misery
Go for thy service
Go for thy slavery
Go for thy happiness
Save thy from them
Save thy from them
Save thy from them
poem by Surabhi Gupta
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The House of Broken Souls
So I guess I'm going back
Yes-I guess I shall return
To a place where hearts are broken
To a place where souls do burn
Back to this place I go
Back again somehow
I must be getting back
I swear I'll go right now
Though this place is dark
Though the souls are dead
Healing is the game
The healing of the head
The body and the soul
A game to go on living
And, they dose me with this stuff
It's this stuff they keep on giving
To hide the pain
To hide the lies
To ignore the pleas
To overrule the cries
They shut us up
They turn the lights
We cannot win
We cannot fight
Oh my lord-I'm back here!
Not again
A cry-A tear
Rolling down this lonely cheek
Of this girl
So lost, so weak
Save her now
She's gone bad!
She's gone crazy!
She's gone mad!
I must know-I must ask
Why right now? Why today?
Is there not another way?
Save me Mom
Help me Dad
I'm so sick
I'm so sad
Pick me up-stop the pain!
It's pouring down
I feel insane!
I've lost it now
And, they do run
Away from me
I'm all of one
Alone at last,
So sad, so cold
I fade away
No longer BOLD
I try to run, I try to fight
I try to kick, I manage to bite
I bite down
And, you sit in pain
You scream outloud
You scream in vain!
'Save me Jesus! '
You do pray
But, the prayers won't save you
Not today.
© Copyright 2008 Nicole Settimi/Dark Lyric Poetry
Dark Lyric Poetry by The Dark Artist Nicole Settimi
poem by Nicole Settimi
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Does Haughty Gaul Invasion Threat?
Does haughty Gaul invasion threat?
Then let the louns beware, Sir;
There's wooden walls upon our seas,
And volunteers on shore, Sir:
The Nith shall run to Corsincon,
And Criffel sink in Solway,
Ere we permit a Foreign Foe
On British ground to rally!
We'll ne'er permit a Foreign Foe
On British ground to rally!
O let us not, like snarling curs,
In wrangling be divided,
Till, slap! come in an unco loun,
And wi' a rung decide it!
Be Britain still to Britain true,
Amang ourselves united;
For never but by British hands
Maun British wrangs be righted!
No! never but by British hands
Shall British wrangs be righted!
The Kettle o' the Kirk and State,
Perhaps a clout may fail in't;
But deil a foreign tinkler loun
Shall ever ca'a nail in't.
Our father's blude the Kettle bought,
And wha wad dare to spoil it;
By Heav'ns! the sacrilegious dog
Shall fuel be to boil it!
By Heav'ns! the sacrilegious dog
Shall fuel be to boil it!
The wretch that would a tyrant own,
And the wretch, his true-born brother,
Who would set the Mob aboon the Throne,
May they be damn'd together!
Who will not sing "God save the King,"
Shall hang as high's the steeple;
But while we sing "God save the King,"
We'll ne'er forget The People!
But while we sing "God save the King,"
We'll ne'er forget The People!
poem by Robert Burns
Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
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[Remember the broken soldiers (ANZAC DAY) lest we forget]
Broken soldiers,
Tread with fear
Through this concrete land
Frayed hearts unravel
And slowly fall
Like empty shells
I sacrificed my life
For a world that doesn’t care…
In return for an ounce of peace
To calm this mental head.
When you stare at me,
You see my eyes weakening
Tears foster,
Instead of beaconing
The fire inside,
Burn my memories,
These withered old hands
Shake and start trembling…
Years have passed,
And I can still hear
The children scream
Women were raped
And freedom was just a dream
History pages turned
So fast the warrior
Fades away…
You read so much
You forget the struggle,
We fought to save this land.
Next time when you stare at me,
Remember who I am…
A person who fought for you…
Never gave up on you…
Zealous in battle to fight for your freedom…
And willing to sacrifice my soul for a…
Cause that doesn’t even seem to matter anymore…
poem by Empath In flames
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Could This Be Magic?
Out upon the islands on a cool summer night,
Buddy, you dont got to hurry. take your time.
What you need is on the menu and you get it tonight.
Buddy, you got womens on your mind.
Could this be magic,
Or could this be love?
Could this turn tragic?
You know that magic often does.
And I see lonely ships upon the water.
Better save the women and children first.
Sail away with someones daughter.
Better save the women and children first.
I hear music on the landin, and theres laughter in the air.
Just could be your boat is comin in.
Yeah, youre leanin back, and your foots tappin and you got your head right.
Theres a full moon out tonight. baby, lets begin.
Could this be magic,
Or could this be love?
Could this turn tragic?
You know that magic often does.
And I see lonely ships upon the water.
Better save the women and children first.
Sail away with someones daughter.
Better save the women and children first.
song performed by by Van Halen
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Save Your Love
You were my woman and I was your man
You were good lookin
You know I was your biggest fan
You tried to teach me things I already knew
When you couldnt reach me
Girl, I think you knew that we were through
Baby, its over
Save your love, save it, save it
Save your love, save it, save it
Save your love, I dont want it (save your love)
Save it for someone else (save it, save it)
Save your love, I dont need it (save your love)
Put it back on the shelf
For somebody else
You said you love me, you may have been right
But hangin above me, girl,
You know that we would fight
You tried to change me and mess up my mind
Now, dont rearrange me
And girl, you know thats why youre left behind
Its over now
Save your love, save it, save it
Save your love, save it, save it
Save your love, I dont want it (save your love)
Save it for someone else (save it, save it)
Save your love, I dont need it (save your love)
Put it back on the shelf
For somebody else
Girl, you know its over
We had some good times
But now theyre gone, so long
Save your love, save it, save it
Save your love, save it, save it
Save your love, I dont want it (save your love)
Save it for someone else (save it, save it)
Save your love, I dont need it (save your love)
Put it back on the shelf
For somebody else
Save your love, I dont want it (save your love)
Save it for someone else (save it, save it)
Save your love, I dont need it (save your love)
Girl, I dont want it, save your love
Save your love, I dont want it (save your love)
Save it for someone else (save it, save it)
Save your love, I dont need it (save your love)
Girl, I dont want it, save your love
Save your love, I dont want it (save your love)
Save it for someone else (save it, save it)
Save your love, I dont need it (save your love)
Girl, I dont want it, save your love
song performed by by Kiss
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Emily Hobhouse
I
How suddenly you changed a moment
from what it was before
and you had a kind of talent
to change everything, improving it
and bit by bit
the pain and suffering was no more.
II
Tending with caring hands
you brought a kind of refuge
to women and children
in British concentration camps
during the Anglo-Boer war
even defying arrest and deportation.
poem by Gert Strydom
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Save Us
Too late to call for the priest
He is not here anymore
We look at the age of the beast
And weve seen its vast armies form
Hear our call
Chorus: please, save us
Please, save us
In permanent madness we live
No time for life and for love
To take is the rule, not to give
Insanity comes from below
To take us all
Chorus: please, save us
Please, save us
We believe that the phenomena of nature
Are the expression of infinitive intelligence
We express our belief that all forms of life
Are manifestations of spirit
And thus, all men are children of god
Far from down below one comes prepared to take us all
Waiting for his future and the final call
We stand on the edge of the world
Just one step more and we fall
Guide us and please take our hands
Without you were weak and alone
Hear our call
Chorus: please, save us
Please, save us
Now!
Save us--from the gods of thunder
Save us--from the dogs of war
Save us--from the creeping nightmares
Save us--from the evils course
Save us--from our own ignorance
Save us--from the man in black
Save us--from the desolation
Save us--from the hate attack
Save us--oh please
Save us--please save us
Save us--oh please
Save us--now!
song performed by by Helloween
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Save The Children
Save the children
Look around you and what do you see
Death, destruction, and misery.
It is not much that they ask
It is gods will and part of our task.
Save the children and let them be free
To live their lives as we.
Give them hope- don’t let them despair
Give them a helping hand and show them that we care.
As their elders we are supposed to teach them what’s right.
Give up your arms- give up the fight.
For when we are gone the problems will still be there
Affection and love is still very dear.
Save the children and let them see
That they no longer have to live in the worlds misery.
Hungry for food and hungry for love
The bird of peace is the snow white dove.
They are hiding in mountaintops and trembling with fear
Not seeing love and showing no tears.
They learn to live in this country torn apart
And in the process they lose their heart.
Is this the way we want our children to be
Grownups fighting and butchering one another
Mother, wife, sister, and brother.
Save the children is all god asks
poem by Louis Rams
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