Hearts of Oak

This is an Anglish version of Reverend Rylance's 1809 version of the song Hearts of Oak.

= Songwords = (Verse 1) When Alfred our king drove the Dane from this land He seeded an oak with his own kingly hand And he up to heaven to hallow the tree As a for England the queen of the sea (Chorus) Hearts of oak are our ships Merry tars are our men We always are ready, steady men, steady We fight and we again and again (Verse 2) The sapling shot up and stuck fast to the ground Withstood all that bellowed and wound And still was it seen then with fresh starkness to shoot When the blood of our had wettened its root (Chorus) (Verse 3) But the worms of sullying had eaten their way Through bark till a wardle had swept them away He has sworn no such our tree shall give rest And our kinfolk soon shall have uprooted the nest (Chorus) (Verse 4) whose lowly wield Europe bemoans Yon brood of who sit on her thrones Shall look on our homeland and shall shiver with awe Where a son of the has bowed to the law (Chorus) (Verse 5) Now long live the Engle, who to make thrive The heartmood which Engles seld felt was alive And his name shall be carved while of freedom we sing On the oak that was seeded by Alfred our king