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Away My Brave Boys

Eliza Carthy sang Away My Brave Boys on her 2023 album Conversations We’ve Had Before. She noted:

From [a Victorian Songster given to me by our friend Slim], a nice bit of jingoism. Made me think of this though, apparently the first anti-war song ever recorded:

I didn’t raise my boy to be a soldier
I brought him up to be my pride and joy
Who dared to put a musket on his shoulder
To kill some other mother’s darling boy
Let nations arbitrate their future troubles
It’s time to put the sword and gun away
There’d be no war today, if mothers all would say
I didn’t raise my boy to be a soldier

(Alfred Bryan, 1915)

Lyrics

Eliza Carthy sings Away My Brave Boys

Away, my brave boys, hoist the flags, beat the drums,
Let the streamers wave over the main:
When old England she calls us, we merrily come,
She won’t call a sailor in vain;
Already we seem an armada to chase,
Already behold the galleons;
Undaunted, unconquer’d, look Death in the face,
And return with a load of doubloons.

Then farewell, for a time, lovely sweethearts, dear wives!
Nancy, fear not the death of Old Blue;
Though we leave you, and merrily venture our lives,
To our loved ones we’ll ever be true;
With spirit we go an armada to chase,
With rapture behold the galleons,
Undaunted, unconquer’d, look Death in the face,
And return with a load of doubloons.

Undaunted, unconquer’d, look Death in the face,
And return with a load of doubloons.