Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, ed. Poems of Places: An Anthology in 31 Volumes.
Spain, Portugal, Belgium, and Holland: Vols. XIV–XV. 1876–79.

Spain: Trafalgar

The Death of Nelson

By S. J. Arnold (1774–1852)

’T WAS in Trafalgar’s bay

We saw the Frenchman lay;

Each heart was bounding then.

We scorned the foreign yoke,

Our ships were British oak,

And hearts of oak our men.

Our Nelson marked them on the wave,

Three cheers our gallant seamen gave,

Nor thought of home and beauty.

Along the line this signal ran,—

“England expects that every man

This day will do his duty.”

And now the cannons roar

Along the affrighted shore;

Our Nelson led the way:

His ship the Victory named;

Long be that Victory famed!

For victory crowned the day.

But dearly was that conquest bought,

For well the gallant hero fought

For England, home, and beauty.

He cried, as midst the fire he ran,

“England expects that every man

This day will do his duty!”

At last the fatal wound,

Which spread dismay around,

The hero’s breast received:

“Heaven fights on our side,

The day’s our own,” he cried;

“Now long enough I ’ve lived.”

“In honor’s cause my life was past,

In honor’s cause I fall at last,

For England, home, and beauty!”

Thus ending life as he began,

England confessed that every man

That day had done his duty.