The Foggy Dew
Noel McLoughlin Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To a city fair rode I
When Ireland's line of marching men
In squadrons passed me by
No pipe did hum, no battle drum
Did sound its dread tattoo
But the Angelus bell o'er the Liffey's swell
Right proudly high over Dublin town
They hung out a flag of war
'Twas better to die 'neath an Irish sky
Than at Suvla or Sud el Bar
And from the plains of Royal Meath
Strong men came hurrying through
While Brittania's sons with their long-range guns
Sailed in from the foggy dew
'Twas England bade our wild geese go
That small nations might be free.
Their lonely graves are by Suvla's waves
On the fringe of the grey North Sea
But had they died by Pearse's side
Or fought with Valera true
Their graves we'd keep where the Fenians sleep
'Neath the hills of the foggy dew
The bravest fell, and the solemn bell
Rang mournfully and clear
For those who died that Eastertide
In the springing of the year
And the world did gaze in deep amaze
At those fearless men and true
Who bore the fight that freedom's light
Might shine through the foggy dew
The Foggy Dew is a song that captures the essence of Ireland's struggle for independence from England. The song begins with a description of the singer's journey to the city fair. As he passes through the glen, he witnesses the marching men of Ireland, who are fighting for their freedom from the English rulers. The song speaks of the courage and passion of these Irish nationalists who take up arms in the name of freedom. It is said that it was inspired by events of the Easter Rising of 1916, when Ireland fought for its independence.
The first verse speaks of how the Irish nationalists marched in squadrons, with no pipe or battle drums, but the only sound that was heard was the Angelus bell ringing out over the Liffey's swell. The second verse speaks of the flag of war that was hung high over Dublin city. The song says that it was better to die beneath an Irish sky than to die far away from home. The third verse speaks of how the Irish soldiers came from all over Ireland, including Royal Meath, to fight against the English. The song goes on to say that the English soldiers, led by Brittania's sons, sailed in from the foggy dew.
The fourth verse speaks of why the Irish nationalists are fighting against the English. They want small nations to be free, and they are sacrificing themselves in the name of this cause. The song says that the graves of the Irish nationalists who died fighting for their freedom are by Suvla's waves, on the fringe of the grey North Sea. It also says that if they had died fighting alongside one of Ireland's most prominent nationalist leaders, Pearse, or the leader of the Irish Republican Army, Valera, their graves would be maintained where the "Fenians sleep beneath the hills of the Foggy Dew." The song's final verse speaks of how the bravest Irish nationalists fell. The solemn bell rings mournfully and clear for those who died fighting at Eastertide in the springtime of the year. The song concludes by saying that the world gazed in amazement at the fearless men and women who fought for the light of freedom to shine through the foggy dew.
Line by Line Meaning
'Twas down the glen one Easter morn
It was one Easter morning that I traveled down the valley
To a city fair rode I
I rode to a fair in the city
When Ireland's line of marching men
I saw the Irish men marching in a line
In squadrons passed me by
They passed me by in groups
No pipe did hum, no battle drum
No one played a pipe, no battle drum was heard
Did sound its dread tattoo
No sound of the drums of war was heard
But the Angelus bell o'er the Liffey's swell
Only the Angelus bell was heard across the Liffey River
Rang out in the foggy dew
It rang out through the misty dew
Right proudly high over Dublin town
A flag was hung high over Dublin town
They hung out a flag of war
They hung out a flag ready for battle
'Twas better to die 'neath an Irish sky
It was better to die fighting for Irish freedom
Than at Suvla or Sud el Bar
Than to die at Suvla Bay or Sud el Bar in the war
And from the plains of Royal Meath
Strong men came hurrying through from the plains of Royal Meath
Strong men came hurrying through
They came with a sense of urgency
While Brittania's sons with their long-range guns
British soldiers with their long-range guns
Sailed in from the foggy dew
Came in from the misty dew
'Twas England bade our wild geese go
England demanded that our soldiers go
That small nations might be free.
So that smaller nations could also be free
Their lonely graves are by Suvla's waves
Many of them are buried by the sea in Suvla Bay
On the fringe of the grey North Sea
On the edge of the cold, grey North Sea
But had they died by Pearse's side
If they had died fighting for Pearse
Or fought with Valera true
Or fought with the true Irish hero Valera
Their graves we'd keep where the Fenians sleep
We would keep their graves amongst the graves of the Fenians
'Neath the hills of the foggy dew
Under the hills below the misty dew
The bravest fell, and the solemn bell
The bravest men fell and a solemn bell tolled
Rang mournfully and clear
It rang clearly, but with sorrow
For those who died that Eastertide
It was for the ones that died during that Easter period
In the springing of the year
During the season of rebirth
And the world did gaze in deep amaze
The world watched in amazement
At those fearless men and true
At those brave and loyal men
Who bore the fight that freedom's light
Who fought for freedom's light to shine
Might shine through the foggy dew
And finally, freedom's light would shine through the misty dew
Contributed by Bella R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Alex V
As down the glen one Easter morn,
To a city fair rode I
There armed lines of marching men
In squadrons passed me by
No pipe did hum, no battle drum
Did sound its loud tattoo
But the Angelus bell o'er the Liffey's swell
Rang out through the foggy dew
Right proudly high in Dublin town
They hung out the flag of war
'Twas better to die 'neath an Irish sky
Than at Suvla or Sudd el Bar
And from the plains of Royal Meath
Strong men came hurrying through
While Brittania's huns with their great big guns
Sailed in through the foggy dew
'Twas England bade our wild geese go
That small nations might be free
But their lonely graves are by Suvla's waves
Or the fringes of the grey North Sea
Oh, had they died by Pearse's side,
Or had they fought with Cathal Brugha
Their names we'd keep where the Fenians sleep
'Neath the shroud of the foggy dew
But the bravest fell, and the requiem bell
Rang mournfully and clear
For those who died that Easter-tide
In the springtime of the year
While the world did gaze with deep amaze
At those fearless men, but few
Who bore that fight, that freedom's light
Might shine through the foggy dew
As down the glen one Easter morn
To a city fair rode I
There armed lines of marching men
In squadrons passed me by
No pipe did hum, no battle drum
Did sound its loud tattoo
But the Angelus bell o'er the Liffey's swell
Rang out through the foggy dew
Alex V
As down the glen one Easter morn,
To a city fair rode I
There armed lines of marching men
In squadrons passed me by
No pipe did hum, no battle drum
Did sound its loud tattoo
But the Angelus bell o'er the Liffey's swell
Rang out through the foggy dew
Right proudly high in Dublin town
They hung out the flag of war
'Twas better to die 'neath an Irish sky
Than at Suvla or Sudd el Bar
And from the plains of Royal Meath
Strong men came hurrying through
While Brittania's huns with their great big guns
Sailed in through the foggy dew
'Twas England bade our wild geese go
That small nations might be free
But their lonely graves are by Suvla's waves
Or the fringes of the grey North Sea
Oh, had they died by Pearse's side,
Or had they fought with Cathal Brugha
Their names we'd keep where the Fenians sleep
'Neath the shroud of the foggy dew
But the bravest fell, and the requiem bell
Rang mournfully and clear
For those who died that Easter-tide
In the springtime of the year
While the world did gaze with deep amaze
At those fearless men, but few
Who bore that fight, that freedom's light
Might shine through the foggy dew
As down the glen one Easter morn
To a city fair rode I
There armed lines of marching men
In squadrons passed me by
No pipe did hum, no battle drum
Did sound its loud tattoo
But the Angelus bell o'er the Liffey's swell
Rang out through the foggy dew
krystyna palczynska
super ,bardzo piekna piosenka ludowa
Scottish Andrew
great arrangement
THEBESTCORONER
Tak, ludowa....... bosze!
Alex V
Honoured be the defenders of Ukraine and their struggle for freedom. Slava Ukraini!
1984szkrabek
great songs... Poland people fought for freedom also
Zammelkatz
Against whom? Poland was divided the third or fourth time by Hitler and Stalin in 1939. That's what is fact. But that not only the two dictators began WW2 is the other side of truth. There was a lot of hate against especially Germans in regions where both were settling that time. Robert Blum, liberal, left-winged-leader in 1848 (Paulskirchenparlament) was right to ban panslawism (There was a congress n Prague in 1848) and also being straightly against imperialist (German) attitudes. Just "Google" that. :) Many Polish and French persons came together with the Germans ("Hambacher Fest") right before "printemps des peuples"/"spring of the peoples" in 19th century. Remember that all peoples are brothers (and sisters). :)
Noch ist Polen nicht verloren (Mieczkewicz, translated Hymn of Poland)
Zammelkatz
Idiot SPAM by a guy who wants to represent Holocaust survivants by giving himself a jewish (Itzhak) name. Told it to YouTube as what it is: Hate Speech. Shaking my head, and History was one of my examination subjects. Idiocy never dies. He could just have read what I wrote before. There's also the possibility of telling it to Police in my country, and I will certainly do that if that guy will act again in his way calling other persons "Nazi" or "Kraut hole". Your IP and pseudonym is saved now.
Dewei Ma
Yeah, inside Saint Patrick's battalion were Polish soldiers too, also Xavier Mina went here, to Mexico, with men from so many euro countries, included Ireland and Poland.
Scott Stewart
As a Scotsman married to a Polish woman I say hell yea brother.