English Curse
Frank Turner Lyrics

Many years back when the old oaks were young
A long time ago, when the trees were only just beginning to grow

Not long after the Northmen had come
It was not too long after the Northmen had arrived

A low and evil deed was done
A despicable and shameful act was committed

In the dark of the New Forest
It happened in the shadows of the woods

In the dark of the New Forest
It took place in the obscurity of the woods

From the shores of Normandy King William came
King William arrived from the coast of Normandy

To Albion fair, King Harold to slay
He came to England to kill King Harold

With greed in his heart and his scurrilous claim
He was driven by his selfish desires and his deceitful justification

He took the land for his own
He seized the land for his personal gain

He took the land for his own
He claimed the land as his possession

Now John was a blacksmith, an honest old man
John was an upstanding elderly blacksmith

He raised up his children and worked with his hands
He cared for and provided for his family through his labor

At his family's forge in the patch of land
He worked at his family's blacksmithing workshop on their plot of land

In the dark of the New Forest
This was in the forest's obscurity

In the dark of the New Forest
This took place in the shadows of the forest

King William rode out after his victory
After his success, King William went out

To ravage the land in his hunger to thieve
He pillaged the land in his insatiable desire to steal

For hunting grounds in the Wessex trees
He wanted the area as hunting grounds in the woods of Wessex

He took the land for his own
He claimed the land as his possession

He took the land for his own
He seized the land for his personal gain

But if you steal the land of an Englishman
However, if you take an Englishman's land

Then you will know this curse
You will suffer from this curse

Your first born son's warm blood will run
The blood of your firstborn son will flow

Upon the English earth
Onto the soil of England

Now King William's son was called Rufus the Red
King William's son was known as Rufus the Red

He took up the crown when his father was dead
When his father died, he became the king

And he rode the hunting grounds in his stead
He went hunting in his father's place

In the dark of the New Forest
This was in the forest's obscurity

In the dark of the New Forest
This took place in the shadows of the forest

But John's curse it called out and Lord Terryl fired low
John's curse rang out and Lord Terryl shot low

The arrow struck William with a sickening blow
The arrow hit William with a terrible force

And he fell from his horse to the ground below
He tumbled from his mount to the earth beneath

And the land took him for it's own
The land claimed him as its own

The land took him for it's own
The land possessed him as its own

So if you steal the land of an Englishman
Therefore, if you take an Englishman's land

Then you will know this curse
You will suffer from this curse

Your first born son's warm blood will run
The blood of your firstborn son will flow

Upon the English earth
Onto the soil of England

Many years back when the old oaks were young
A long time ago, when the trees were only just beginning to grow

Not long after the Northmen had come
It was not too long after the Northmen had arrived

A low and evil deed was done
A despicable and shameful act was committed

In the dark of the New Forest
It happened in the shadows of the woods

In the dark of the New Forest
It took place in the obscurity of the woods