THE CHARGE OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE

by
ALFRED TENNYSON
 THE CHARGE OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE
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.
'Forward, the Light Brigade!'
Was there a man dismayed?
Not though the soldier knew
Some one had blundered :
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.
Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them
Volleyed at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of Hell,
Rode the six hundred.
Alfred Lord Tennyson.
LO: To explore the language in Charge of the Light Brigade
 THE CHARGE OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE

This poem is about the 600 British soldiers who died in

Crimean War (1854-1856). The soldier belonged to a
light brigade which means they were on horseback and
armed only with sabres and baton (light arms). They were
ordered into a valley which had heavily armed Russian
enemy battalions on three sides - front, left and right. The
Russians were fully armed and they were very powerful and
they had powerful cannons. When the light brigade charged
into this "valley of death", they were massacred by the
cannons fire. Most of them died but they showed great
heroism and patriotism in battle.
What is the poem
about?
The poem was written in
1854.

It tells the story of a brave,

but suicidal British cavalry
charge during the Crimean
War.

Lord Cardigan attacked a

valley with 673 cavalrymen.

The British were

surrounded by cannons
and, in minutes, half were
dead.
What happens in the poem?

The Light Brigade move into

position.

The order comes to ‘Charge for

the guns’ and the men charge –
they do not ‘reason why’.

Surrounded by ‘cannon’ on all

sides they continue to ride ‘boldly’

They disappear into the ‘smoke’ –

the enemy lines are ‘shatter’d’ but The last stanza asks
the Brigade’s losses have been readers to ‘Honour the Light
terrible. Brigade’.
What does the poem
mean?
The poem suggests that:

The experience of Battle can be

both thrilling and terrifying at the
same time.

That the sacrifice and bravery of

British soldiers should be
celebrated.

Some readers think that the poem

is too patriotic and glorifies war. On the other hand …
Tennyson may use the
The ‘wild charge’ is called ‘Noble’. poem to criticise British
generals who ‘blundered’
THEME
A war can bring out the best and worst of
The mankind. The poem not only highlights the
complexities violence and tragedy of war but also
of war celebrates the courage and loyalty of the
soldiers.
Courage
THEME The poem honours the bravery and heroism
and
of the Light Brigade who are not afraid to
heroism
fight in the battle despite knowing that
deaths awaits them.

The soldiers fight bravely to defend their

Patriotism country despite knowing the futility of the
situation

The soldiers obediently follow the

Loyalty commander’s order without question which
and duty shows that they have a strong sense of duty
and are willing to risk their own lives for
their country
 We must be Courage and loyalty are
loyal and admirable qualities which
courageous we must try to attain, as in
portrayed by the soldiers

When we know that some

We must
MORAL instructions or orders
not follow
VALUES could lead to danger, we
blindly
must voice our
disagreement

We must War is not the answer for

struggle for everything, we have to
peace rather negotiate and try to solve
than warfare disagreement through
diplomacy.