The Charge of The Light Brigade by Lord Alfred Tennyson

Presented by Fadhilah Fasya binti Nor Jasni

This poem is very famous as it is based on true event, Crimean War, battle of Balaclava in 1854. This is one of the legendary scene imagined by painters.

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!

What Happened?

In this poem, 600 soldiers are in war with their weapons and horses to fight for their nation. Unfortunately, 'Forward, the Light Brigade!, someone had blundered' shows that one of them makes a false decision to charge straight into the 'valley of death', or maybe someone betrayed them. Is it really a mistake? A betrayal? Here, we could assume that the 'valley of death' means that they will be dead when they go into the direction, as the enemies has surrounded the place when the guns and cannons start to fire. As soldiers are noble, they do not question anything and charge boldly and bravely. They fight and fight until their last breath even some of the horses and soldiers are already fell. In the end, they died with pride and glory for their nation.

Lessons

We must be responsible in whatever we do just like the soldiers. It is their duty to fight with honor and they did it well even though they knew that in the end they will lose their own life. They worked hard till the end without any complaint.