54 Stakes
Wizzard Lyrics


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Relieve your burden by confessing your sins
We, the Holy Inquisition are the heavenly court on earth

We shall never tell you the lies that you want to hear

You will tell us the truth so save yourselves
From the pain that you will soon face
We shall never tell you the lies that you want to hear

The first ones were tortured
The others watched the brothers scream
Broken bones, exploding finger tips
And a brother's burnt off feet

For weeks they rot in the dungeons
Tormented and starved
One by one confessing to heresy
They told stories of having kissed the goat
Having spat on the cross and practised sodomy
They dishonoured their brothers and themselves

Now it has been proven that your order is evil
And guilty as charged to all those deadly sins

What we said we said only to stop the torture

Do not lie anymore your confession is final
Reverse it and you will face a death at the stake

What we said we said only to stop the torture

So 54 Templars reversed
Their false confessions
Though they had sealed their fates
Under horrible torture

There were doubts about the truthfulness of the
accusations in the papal commission
Some members were even thinking about dismissing the
charges due to lack of evidence
Would these Templars have the chance to speak out...
The worried king had to find a way to stop them
The new Archbishop, a king's relative sent his
forces to quietly capture the Templars...
In order to burn them at the stake as relapsed heretics!

54 stakes stood in a row
54 Ternplars marched to their deaths
Roasting flesh, screaming families
Not one brother saved his life by confessing again
The honour of the order was worth dying for

Overall Meaning

The song "54 Stakes" by Wizzard is a historical narrative about the persecution of the Knights Templar, a Catholic order of knights that fought during the Crusades in the Middle Ages. The lyrics speak from the perspective of the Holy Inquisition, a church court that was responsible for investigating and punishing heresy. The song begins by encouraging the knights to confess their sins and seek forgiveness from the church. However, it is clear that the Inquisition is not interested in absolving the knights of their crimes, but instead is out to extract a false confession through torture.


The second section of the song describes the torture that the knights undergo to compel them to confess to heresy. There is a graphic portrayal of the physical violence and psychological manipulation that the knights are subjected to, including the breaking of bones and the burning of feet. The lyrics reveal the true nature of the Inquisition, which is not interested in justice or truth but in obtaining a confession at any cost.


The final section of the song recounts the fate of the knights who defied the Inquisition and chose to die rather than betray their faith. 54 Templars were burned at the stake as a result of their bravery, refusing to recant their confessions and remain loyal to their order. The song ends on a note of tragedy and sacrifice, emphasizing the importance of honor and brotherhood in the face of tyranny.


Line by Line Meaning

Relieve your burden by confessing your sins
The Holy Inquisition punishes heretics on earth, and confessing can lighten one's burden.


We, the Holy Inquisition are the heavenly court on earth
The Holy Inquisition is seen as an authority in punishing heresy.


We shall never tell you the lies that you want to hear
The Holy Inquisition only wants the truth from confessions, no matter how uncomfortable they may be.


You will tell us the truth so save yourselves
It's better to confess and be punished by the Inquisition than to lie and face torture.


From the pain that you will soon face
Those who lie will face terrible torture and punishment.


The first ones were tortured
The Inquisition subjected the captured Templars to horrific torture methods.


The others watched the brothers scream
Other Templars watched as their comrades were tortured.


Broken bones, exploding finger tips
Torture methods were so cruel that they resulted in severe injuries such as broken bones and damaged finger tips.


And a brother's burnt off feet
One Templar had his feet burned as part of his torture.


For weeks they rot in the dungeons
Templars were kept in dungeons for weeks, suffering in terrible conditions.


Tormented and starved
The Templars were not fed properly and were subjected to mental torture throughout their imprisonment.


One by one confessing to heresy
Under the pressure of torture, the Templars confessed to heresy.


They told stories of having kissed the goat
The Templars were made to confess to absurd accusations and blasphemies.


Having spat on the cross and practised sodomy
The Templars were made to confess to acts of blasphemy and indecency.


They dishonoured their brothers and themselves
By confessing to crimes they didn't actually commit, the Templars dishonored their order and themselves.


Now it has been proven that your order is evil
The Inquisition believes that the Templar order is guilty of heresy and other sins.


And guilty as charged to all those deadly sins
The Holy Inquisition believes that the Templar order is guilty of committing deadly sins.


What we said we said only to stop the torture
The Inquisition lied to the Templars to get them to stop resisting and confessing to false charges.


Do not lie anymore your confession is final
Once a confession is made, it cannot be taken back, and lying after the fact will have dire consequences.


Reverse it and you will face a death at the stake
To recant one's confession would lead to death at the stake, because of the severity of the charges against the Templars.


So 54 Templars reversed
Despite the risks, 54 Templars recanted their false confessions.


Their false confessions
The confessions made earlier were false and made under duress.


Though they had sealed their fates
Even though they had initially made false confessions, they knew that it had sealed their eventual fate.


There were doubts about the truthfulness of the accusations in the papal commission
Even members of the papal commission had doubts about the veracity of the charges against the Templars.


Some members were even thinking about dismissing the charges due to lack of evidence
Due to a lack of evidence, some papal commission members considered dropping the charges against the Templars.


Would these Templars have the chance to speak out...
There was a possibility that Templars would be allowed to defend themselves or speak out against their charges.


The worried king had to find a way to stop them
The king, fearful that the Templars would speak out against him, decided to take action against the order.


The new Archbishop, a king's relative sent his forces to quietly capture the Templars...
A new Archbishop, who was related to the king, quietly ordered the capture of the Templars.


In order to burn them at the stake as relapsed heretics!
In order to carry out the punishment for heresy, the Templars were burned at the stake.


54 stakes stood in a row
54 Templars were sentenced to be burned at the stake.


54 Templars marched to their deaths
The 54 Templars walked towards their execution by burning at the stake.


Roasting flesh, screaming families
The gruesome execution resulted in burning flesh and the screams of family members watching from the crowd.


Not one brother saved his life by confessing again
Despite the fear of being burned alive, none of the Templars recanted their recanted confessions.


The honour of the order was worth dying for
The Templars valued the honor of their order above their own lives, and chose to die rather than dishonor their order further.




Contributed by Jack S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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jeff


on Ball Park Incident

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