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by Charles (John Huffam) Dickens (1812 - 1870)

Old England, she has great warriors
Language: English 
Old England, she has great warriors,
Great princes, and poets great; 
But the Blacksmith is not to be quite forgot,
In the history of the State.

He is rich in the best of all metals,
Yet silver he lacks and gold;
And he payeth his due, and his heart is true,
Though he bloweth both hot and cold.

The boldest is he of incendiaries 
That ever the wide world saw,
And a forger as rank as e'er robbed the Bank,
Though he never doth break the law.

He hath shoes that are worn by strangers,
Yet he laugheth and maketh more;
And a share (concealed) in the poor man's field,
Yet it adds to the poor man's store.

Then, hurrah for the iron Blacksmith! 
And hurrah for his iron crew!
And whenever we go where his forges glow,
We'll sing what A MAN can do.

About the headline (FAQ)

First published in All the Year Round, April 1859, the second of two Trade Songs.

Text Authorship:

  • by Charles (John Huffam) Dickens (1812 - 1870), "The Blacksmith" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

  • by Thomas Frederick Dunhill (1877 - 1946), "The Blacksmith", published 1937 [unison chorus and piano], London : Edward Arnold [
     text not verified 
    ]
  • by John Liptrot Hatton (1809 - 1886), "The Iron Blacksmith" [high voice and piano], London : Boosey & Hawkes [
     text not verified 
    ]

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2010-04-28
Line count: 20
Word count: 145

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