Concord Hymn
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The "Concord Hymn" is a song written by Ralph Waldo Emerson in 1837 for the dedication of the Obelisk, a battle monument in Concord, Massachusetts that commemorated the contributions of area citizens at the Battle of Lexington and Concord (April 19, 1775), the first battle of the American Revolution sparked by Shot heard 'round the world. It is now better known as a poem.
Emerson's "Concord Hymn" remains a piece of literature that can ring through the hearts and minds of visitors who travel to the North Bridge battlefield. One source of its power may be the author's personal ties to the subject. Emerson's grandfather was at the bridge on the day of the battle; their family home, The Old Manse, is next to the bridge; and Emerson is known to have written the hymn while living there.
In 1837, the hymn was sung to the tune "Old Hundredth" during Concord's 4th of July celebration. Modern critic Jonathan Mardin reflected on it favorably, calling it a "Too little-known masterpiece."
Text of the \"Concord Hymn\"
- By the rude bridge that arched the flood,
- Their flag to April's breeze unfurled;
- Here once the embattled farmers stood;
- And fired the shot heard round the world.
- The foe long since in silence slept;
- Alike the conqueror silent sleeps,
- And Time the ruined bridge has swept
- Down the dark stream that seaward creeps.
- On this green bank, by this soft stream,
- We place with joy a votive stone,
- That memory may their deeds redeem,
- When, like our sires, our sons are gone.
- O Thou who made those heroes dare
- To die, and leave their children free, --
- Bid Time and Nature gently spare
- The shaft we raised to them and Thee.
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