Soldiers of '22
| "Soldiers of '22." | |
|---|---|
| Song | |
| Language | English and Irish |
| Released | 1962 |
| Genre | Irish rebel |
| Songwriter(s) | Brian O'Higgins |
"Soldiers of '22" is an Irish rebel song written by Brian O'Higgins, also known as Brian na Banban, an Irish Republican and composer of numerous rebel poems and songs including the "Marching Song of Na Fianna Éireann" and "Song of the Dawn" which was once a favourite marching song of the West Cork Brigade during the Tan War.
O'Higgins spent twenty-five days on hunger strike during the Irish Civil War which almost killed him, the song was written to commemorate the men who died for the Irish Republican cause during that war. It was published in the 1962 edition of the Wolfe Tone Annual which was entitled "A Salute to the Soldiers of 1922". In the last stanza O'Higgins calls upon the youth of Ireland to follow faithfully in the footsteps of the men of 1922:
They were true to our right, they fought the fight,
And they rest in the peace of God.
Lift up your hearts, O, brave young men,
And march in the ways they trod!
The cause still calls that called to them
And the task will only be through
When freedom comes to the land that was loved
By the Soldiers of '22!
Recordings
Artists who have recorded the song include: