The Charge of the Light Brigade

• The Charge of the Light Brigade in a nutshell

  The Charge of the Light Brigade was first published in 1855 and tells the story of a battle during the Crimean War (1853-1855), in which a British cavalry unit, the “Light Brigade”, was ordered to charge against a Russian artillery unit. This order essentially sent approximately six hundred men to their possible deaths. The poet, Tennyson, read a newspaper report about the battle, and he wrote the poem to celebrate the heroism and sacrifice of the soldiers, but also to criticise those in power who gave the order, as it caused so many deaths. The poem deals most obviously with the theme of conflict via war, but also explores the inner conflict of doing one’s duty, even when it leads to almost certain death.
• The Charge of the Light Brigade breakdown

  Lines 1-8

  “Half a league, half a league,

  Half a league onward,

  All in the valley of Death

  Rode the six hundred.

  ‘Forward, the Light Brigade!

  Charge for the guns!’ he said: 

  Into the valley of Death

  Rode the six hundred.”

  Translation

  • The speaker reveals the subject of the poem in this first stanza
  • Six hundred soldiers on horses (the “Light Brigade”) rode for a mile and a half (“half a league”) into the valley of Death
  • Their commander ordered them to charge forward towards the artillery
• Tennyson’s intention

  • Tennyson uses repetition of distance at the start of the poem to emphasise how far they have to go and how exposed and vulnerable the soldiers are
  • The number of men is also repeated throughout the poem to reinforce the number of lives lost
  • Marching into the valley of Death is a biblical reference to Psalm 23: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil;”
  • The poet here suggests that the men knew that they were riding to their deaths
  • But the biblical reference implies that the men may have taken comfort in knowing their God was with them
• Lines 9-17

  “‘Forward, the Light Brigade!’

  Was there a man dismay’d?

  Not tho’ the soldier knew

  Some one had blunder’d:

  Theirs not to make reply,

  Theirs not to reason why,

  Theirs but to do and die:

  Into the valley of Death

  Rode the six hundred.”

   Translation

  • The commander repeats the order to advance
  • Was any soldier discouraged or afraid? No, even though they knew that someone had made a mistake and that this was a suicide mission
  • It wasn’t up to them to question their orders; their job was to follow those orders and die
  • So the six hundred men rode to their deaths
• Tennyson’s intention

  • In this stanza, Tennyson reveals the thoughts of the soldiers and their awareness that someone had made a mistake (“blunder’d”) that would cost them their lives
  • However, they were bound by a sense of duty, so they did not think to question it or to challenge their orders
  • Although the use of the rhetorical question could suggest an element of doubt in the soldiers’ minds
  • Their sense of duty reflects the power those in charge had over whether the regular soldiers lived or died
• Lines 18-26

  “Cannon to right of them,

  Cannon to left of them,

  Cannon in front of them

  Volley’d and thunder’d;

  Storm’d at with shot and shell,

  Boldly they rode and well,

  Into the jaws of Death,

  Into the mouth of Hell

  Rode the six hundred.”

  Translation

  • The men were surrounded by cannons and loud blasts
  • They were showered with gunshots and artillery shells
  • But even so, they continued to ride bravely into the mouth of Death and Hell itself
• Tennyson’s intention

  • The speaker of the poem tells the tale as someone who was there and saw it all happen
  • This lends a level of authenticity to the tale
  • Via the repetition of “cannon”, the men knew that they were surrounded by military machinery, but still they rode on bravely 
  • Tennyson is again commenting on the sense of duty the soldiers possessed, as well as their courage
  • Death and Hell are personified as creatures that will eat the soldiers
• Lines 27-38

  “Flash’d all their sabres bare,

  Flash’d as they turn’d in air

  Sabring the gunners there,

  Charging an army, while

  All the world wonder’d:

  Plunged in the battery-smoke

  Right thro’ the line they broke;

  Cossack and Russian

  Reel’d from the sabre-stroke

  Shatter’d and sunder’d.

  Then they rode back, but not

  Not the six hundred.”
• Translation

  • The soldiers raised their swords (“sabres”) into the air, which flashed in the light
  • They charged into the army and stabbed the enemy soldiers who were manning the guns
  • The whole world watched in amazement and confusion
  • The soldiers plunged into the smoke from the guns and broke through the enemy lines
  • The Cossack and Russian soldiers reeled from the sword strikes, shattered and broken
  • The Light Brigade rode back, but not all of them made it
• Tennyson’s intention

  • In this stanza, Tennyson reveals that while the army charged to their deaths, the world wondered why they were ordered to do so
  • Ironically, the only people not wondering were the soldiers themselves
  • “Cossack and Russian” is a reference to the enemy soldiers who were fighting against British soldiers during the Crimean War
  • At the end of this stanza, the speaker reveals that some did make it out alive
  • History tells us that 247 of the men returned home from that battle
• Lines 39-49

  “Cannon to the right of them,

  Cannon to the left of them,

  Cannon behind them

  Volley’d and thunder’d;

  Storm’d at with shot and shell,

  While horse and hero fell,

  They that had fought so well

  Came thro’ the jaws of Death

  Back from the mouth of Hell,

  All that was left of them,

  Left of the six hundred.”

  Translation

  • Again, the speaker repeats the fact that the soldiers were surrounded by firing cannons
  • Whilst many soldiers and horses died, those that fought well survived
  • That was all that was left of the six hundred who set out
• Tennyson’s intention

  • The repetition of the image of the cannons emphasises the soldiers’ bravery and courage
  • The speaker clearly finds it miraculous that some came back at all
• Lines 50-55

  “When can their glory fade?

  O the wild charge they made!

  All the world wonder’d.

  Honour the charge they made!

  Honour the Light Brigade,

  Noble six hundred!”

  Translation

  • The speaker queries when their bravery would ever be forgotten, as the whole world admired what they did
  • The speaker then urges the reader to respect the soldiers and what they did, those brave men
• Tennyson’s intention

  • In this stanza, the speaker calls to honour and respect the six hundred men who rode at the Battle of Balaclava
  • The rhetorical question, “When can their glory fade?” suggests both the fallen and the survivors would be forever remembered and honoured
  • This rhetorical device also alludes to the poem being a piece of propaganda
  • This is reinforced by the imperative verb “honour”, demanding that the public honour the soldiers
• Form

  The poem is written in the form of a ballad, a type of historic poetry form used to commemorate a story for future generations to hear. The poem, therefore, acts to memorialize the people who were killed in the conflict, and their heroism and bravery.
• Form: The charge of the light Brigade

  
• The charge of the light Brigade. Structure

  Tennyson uses rhythm and rhyme to establish the atmosphere of the poem and to emphasise the themes of war and patriotism.

  
• The charge of the light Brigade. Structure

  
• Language

  The language Tennyson employs reinforces the main themes of war, patriotism and heroism in the face of certain death.

  
• Language: The charge of the light Brigade

  
• Context: War and heroism

  • The poem is about an advance made by approximately 600 British soldiers on horseback in 1854 during the Battle of Balaclava, part of the Crimean War
  • Tennyson read a newspaper report about the battle and wrote the poem to celebrate the sacrifice the soldiers made for their country
  • The order was to attack a very strongly defended Russian position:
  • As they charged into the valley, the soldiers of the Light Brigade were fired at from all sides
  • Although they were surrounded, some of the soldiers made it through to the Russian line, and ended up engaged in a violent battle with swords and hand-to-hand combat
• • Tennyson also indirectly criticises the orders given by Lord Raglan, the man in charge, as his order caused so many deaths:
  • Tennyson was poet laureate at the time, so he could not be openly critical of British systems and institutions
  • He was duty bound to glorify war to the British public, to defend the positions of the aristocracy
  • Tennyson led a rather privileged life, leading some to question the extent of his knowledge about the reality of war
  • The Crimean War was extremely well documented, and was largely unpopular with the British public:
  • They saw it as unnecessary and were aware of the mistakes made because of how it was being reported
  • This battle triggered much debate about the war and its leadership
• • It was also one of the first conflicts to use modern military techniques, like exploding artillery shells, resulting in death and destruction on a much wider scale
  • Allusions to Christianity would have offered comfort to Victorian readers
  • The poem suggests that heroism isn’t just about bravery, but also about duty:
  • Being willing to obey orders no matter the cost
  • The theme of nationalism is present in the final stanza of the poem, as the poet instructs the reader, as in the collective general public, to “honour” the light brigade for their actions
• Given that The Charge of the Light Brigade focuses mainly on war and patriotism, the following comparisons would be a good place to start:

  • The Charge of the Light Brigade and Exposure
  • The Charge of the Light Brigade and Bayonet Charge
• The Charge of the Light Brigade and Exposure

  Comparison in a nutshell:

  This comparison provides the opportunity to compare how different poets present the experience of war. Although the experiences of war are presented differently, both ultimately underline the needlessness of war and that the experiences of the soldiers are to be taken seriously.

  Similarities:

  
• The Charge of the Light Brigade and Exposure: Similarities:

  
• The Charge of the Light Brigade and Exposure, Differences:

  
• The Charge of the Light Brigade and Exposure, Differences:

  
• The Charge of the Light Brigade and Bayonet Charge

  Comparison in a nutshell:

  This comparison provides the opportunity to compare how those involved in war are treated. In The Charge of the Light Brigade, Tennyson focuses on the collective, whereas in Bayonet Charge, the focus is on the individual and his sense of isolation. However, in both poems, the soldiers’ actions are ultimately out of their own control.
• The Charge of the Light Brigade and Bayonet Charge, Similarities:

  
• The Charge of the Light Brigade and Bayonet Charge, Similarities:

  
• The Charge of the Light Brigade and Bayonet Charge, Differences:

  
• The Charge of the Light Brigade and Bayonet Charge, Differences: