Dying British Sergeant, The

DESCRIPTION: The British soldier recalls sailing to America to suppress the rebels. Told to expect easy duty and a swift victory, the soldiers instead find an implacable enemy; "Freedom or death! was all their cry." The singer is mortally wounded and bids farewell
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1931
KEYWORDS: war death patriotic
FOUND IN: US(MA,NE)
REFERENCES (6 citations):
Flanders/Ballard/Brown/Barry-NewGreenMountainSongster, pp. 118-120, "The Dying Sergeant" (1 text, 1 tune)
Warner-TraditionalAmericanFolkSongsFromAnneAndFrankWarnerColl 10, "The British Soldier" (1 text, 1 tune)
Warner-FolkSongsAndBalladsOfTheEasternSeaboard, pp. 64-65, "The Dying British Sergeant" (1 text, 1 tune)
Fuson-BalladsOfTheKentuckyHighlands, p. 195, "Our Fleet," "Our British Troops," "American Boys" (3 fragments, first three of seven "Quatrains on the War"; the date in "Our Fleet" should of course be 1776, not 1770)
Scott-TheBalladOfAmerica, pp. 69-71, "The Dying Redcoat" (1 text, 1 tune)
DT, DYSARGE* DYSARGE2*
Roud #2801
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "The British Soldier (I)" (subject)
NOTES [12 words]: As "The Dying Sergeant," his song is item dA29 in Laws's Appendix II. - RBW
Last updated in version 4.2
File: Wa010

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