"Charge!"
And down to the clash and the flashing of spears,
To the heart of the seething tumult of savage Emirs,
Cleaving a pathway thro' weapon and armour and targe,
Thundered the headlong rush of the cavalry charge.
Lo, on a sudden, — all hidden and lurking unseen, —
Leapt into life from the hollow ravine
Foemen in rank on rank, where before there were none!
"Are they hundreds or thousands?"
What matter when fame's to be won?
It was conquer or die! Did one fall from the saddle in pain,
'Twas farewell to the sunlight he never should look on again;
Hacked and hewed from the semblance of man by the pitiless foes;
For the Red Cross never can save from such foemen as those!
Back to the world from the hurry and heat of the fray:
But the blood of the brave went to winning the laurels of that day.
"Form!" And they formed at the order (the muster was four
Where, ere the winning of spurs, there was numbered a score);
Blinded with blood, black with powder, and maddened with pain;
Ready to charge for old England — again and again!
Notes
From THE FOREMOST TRAIL, by Cicely Fox Smith, published by Sampson Low, Marston & Co., London, UK, © 1899, pp. 43-44.
Note by the poet:
"At the battle of Omdurman, September 2nd, 1898, the 21st Lancers were ordered to clear off a number of Dervishes who were harassing our troops. The number was much greater than was believed when the order was given, owing to a depression in the ground which sheltered a large force. The loss of life among the Lancers was very heavy. In B troop, only four men out of twenty rallied at the further side."
Contributed by Ian "Nobby" Dye of Bristol, UK.
Sir Winston Churchill, then a supernumary lieutenant with the 21st took part in this action and there are two chapters about it in his book "The River War" which was published in the same year [1919] as this poem. Three Victoria Crosses were issued after this action.
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