A Brief History
On October 25, 1854, the gallant but foolish Battle of Balaclava took place during the Crimean War, propelling the Light Brigade into immortality when Alfred, Lord Tennyson, penned his great poem, The Charge of the Light Brigade.
Digging Deeper
As horrible as war is, human combat has also inspired writers to create epic poems, books and even music to remember those that fought and died. Just a a few of these great works include:
In Flanders Fields by Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae, a Canadian doctor, who was lamenting the loss of life at the Second Battle of Ypres in 1815.
Paul Revere’s Ride by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in 1860, remembering the bravery of Americans at the start of the American Revolution in 1775.
The 1812 Overture by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1880 recalling the Russian defense against Napoleon’s invasion of 1812.
And the fictional accounts of War and Peace by Tolstoy in 1865 chronicling Russian involvement in the Napoleonic Wars of 1803 to 1815, and All Quiet on the Western Front, a German perspective of World War I by Erich Maria Remarque in 1928.
Note: And do not forget movies!
Question for students (and subscribers) to ponder: What is your favorite war inspired poem, music or literary work?
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Hollander, John (editor). War Poems. Everyman’s Library, 1999.
Sweetmen, J. Balaclava 1854: The Charge of the Light Brigade. Osprey Publishing, 1990.
