The Crimean War 18541856

Britain and France

against Russia
Began after the
Turkish Empire
collapsed and Russia
wanted to extend
power south. Allies
landed in Crimea and
took control of
Sebastopol.
War in Crimea,
southern Russia.
British cavalry (men
on horseback) called
the Light Brigade

The British cavalry

commander mistook his
orders to retake some guns
held by the Russians. Instead
he told his men to charge the
main Russian position, which
was at the head of a valley
bristling with artillery. The 600
horsemen obeyed but two
thirds were killed or wounded.
The Charge is the best known
example of heroism and
stupidity of war.

The Charge of the Light Brigade

This poem tells the story of the
failed charge of the British
cavalry in the Battle of Balaclava
in October 1854. Britain was
fighting with France, Sardinia
and the Ottoman Empire against
Russian forces in the Crimean
War. Although it is unclear who
was actually responsible, a
cavalry group, the Light Brigade
(led disastrously by Lord
Cardigan who miraculously
survived), was ordered to attack
a very strongly defended Russian
position. His account to

Alfred Tennyson
You can compare
this poem with
other poems about
the same themes:
effects of conflict:
'Poppies', 'Futility';
reality of battles:
'Bayonet Charge';
patriotism: 'next to

Alfred Tennyson
(18O9-1892) was born
in Lincolnshire and
later lived on the Isle
of Wight and in Surrey.
He studied at Trinity
College, Cambridge.
Tennyson was one of
the great poets of the
Victorian era and was

We advanced down a gradual descent of more than three-quarters

of a mile, with the batteries vomiting forth upon us shells and shot,
round and grape, with one battery on our right flank and another
on the left, and all the intermediate ground covered with the
Russian riflemen; so that when we came to within a distance of
fifty yards from the mouths of the artillery which had been hurling
destruction upon us, we were, in fact, surrounded and encircled by
a blaze of fire, in addition to the fire of the riflemen upon our
flanks.
As we ascended the hill the oblique fire of the artillery poured
upon our rear, so that we had thus a strong fire upon our front, our
flank, and our rear.
We entered the battery we went through the battery the two
leading regiments cutting down a great number of the Russian
gunners in their onset. In the two regiments which I had the
honour to lead, every officer, with one exception, was either killed
or wounded, or had his horse shot under him or injured. Those
regiments proceeded, followed by the second line, consisting of

This poem is based on a true

incident from the Crimean War,
where a commanding officer gave
an order that led to hundreds of
soldiers ending up dead.

There's a line in the

Bible that says
"Though I walk
through the valley
of the shadow of
death, I will fear no
evil." (Psalm 23).
Using biblical
references
makes the poem
seem solemn and
significant.
Tennyson metaphorically
describes the place of
battle as the valley of
Death. This is a
powerful image as it
suggests that death is all
around the men and that
they cannot escape it.
The Russian gunmen
were at the head of the
valley looking down from
a strong vantage point at
the cavalry; the British
had little hope of victory.
The valley is defined

1.
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.

Repetition creates a sense of

impending doom and the idea
that what is going to happen is
inevitable. Repetition of "the
six hundred" in each stanza
reinforces the idea of the large
numbers of men involved. It
also creates an image of a

Suggests that not

everyone is going
onward.
The rhythm sounds
like galloping
horses' hooves it
gives the
impression that the
horses are
unstoppable. This
strong, regular,
relentless rhythm
that creates a fast
pace, imitating the
cavalry.
Sounds
sinister
the reader is
warned right from
the start that
something bad is
going to happen.
The commanding
officer is speaking
here.

Soldiers realise the order

was a mistake but do
what they're told because
it's their duty to obey
orders. The poet admires
the bravery and sacrifice
of the men because they
were determined to obey
orders even though they
knew death was likely.
He thinks that the world
should recognise their
bravery and appreciate
their sacrifice.

The poem describes a

disastrous battle between
British cavalry (soldiers on
horseback) and Russian
forces during the Crimean
War (1853-1856). A
misunderstanding meant
that the Light Brigade was
ordered to advance into a
valley surrounded by enemy
soldiers. The cavalry were
only armed with swords,
whereas the Russian soldiers
had guns. The Light Brigade
were virtually defenceless

2.
Forward, the Light Brigade!
Was there a man dismayd?
Not tho the soldier knew
Some one had blunderd:
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.

Repeating the
command from line
5 shows the
commanding officer
is determined there
is no going back.

Rhyme and repetition

emphasise the soldiers'
obedience and sense of
duty, even though they
know they will almost
certainly be killed. The
poet seems shocked
and in disbelief by the
stupidity of the order,
but this doesn't
diminish his respect for
the soldiers who did
their duty.

The onomatopoeic verbs

volleyed, thundered and
stormed all have high
energy and evoke the
sounds of anger, of
aggression, of war and
could also suggest the
noise from the cannons.

The poet admires

the soldiers
because they are
brave and skilful
despite the horrors
they face.
Tennyson uses
respectful
language to
emphasise the
soldiers' bravery.
The first three stanzas
end with the same line.
It adds to the sense of
foreboding and
reminds us of the
number of soldiers.

3.
Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them
Volleyd and thunderd;
Stormd at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of Hell
Rode the six hundred.

The repetition of the

word cannon with its
short syllable sounds
explosive making it
clear that they are
surrounded by
powerful weapons
and
that there is very
little chance of them
The monosyllabic
surviving
words after cannon
sound like a fastpaced, relentless
bombardment of
shells
Alliteration
of the
letter s emphasises
the idea of
ammunition flying
towards them.

These images personify death and hell and make them seem
like monsters that the soldiers can't escape from. There's a
suggestion that the poet is horrified by the violence of the battle
through his personification of Death and Hell. The jaws of
Death evokes a powerful image of inescapability the men
have been gripped by something savage and Death will not
release its hold over the men. The mouth of Hell also conjures
an image of sheer horror. It is as if the earth has opened up to
consume the men they will die terribly. The mens lives have

The third line

reminds us that
the cavalry only
had swords
against the
Russian guns.

The drawn out vowel

sound of the
onomatopoeic word
plunged help us to
imagine the utter
despair of the men as if
consumed by smoke but
also helps us appreciate
their bravery and
courage.
The alliteration in this
line sounds vicious
however the
onomatopoeic word
shattered helps us to
imagine the men and
valley as broken.

4.
Flashd all their sabres bare,
Flashd as they turnd in air
Sabring the gunners there,
Charging an army, while
All the world wonderd:
Plunged in the battery-smoke
Right thro the line they broke;
Cossack and Russian
Reeld from the sabre-stroke
Shatterd and sunderd.
Then they rode back, but not
Not the six hundred.

The repetition of the

onomatopoeic word Flashd
(flashed) with its quick sounding
vowel sound gives us a sense of
the speed of the attack and of
death. The rhyme creates a
powerful image of the cavalry
using their swords.

Although it sounds
like they've been
successful, it's
clear that some of
them have been

The fifth line could mean

that people marvelled at
their bravery and also
wondered why they had
been sent on the charge.

A Cossack is a warrior
from southern Russia and
the Ukraine. Throughout
these stanzas there is
assonance of the harsh
short vowel sounds,
o,u and a (as in
plunged and wondered,
Cossack and volleyed
and cannon and
flashed). The harsh
landscape of war is
evoked by these

The opening of this stanza

is similar to the opening
lines of stanza three, but
now the soldiers are
retreating. The repetition
emphasises the consistent
attack on the troops.

The repetition
reminds us that
lives have been
lost, and makes the
poem sound sad.

5.
Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon behind them
Volleyd and thunderd;
Stormd 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 six hundred.

The sense of
admiration is
touched with
sadness.

6.
When can their glory fade?
O the wild charge they made!
All the world wonderd.
Honour the charge they made!
Honour the Light Brigade,
Noble six hundred!

Sounds
dramatic and
daring.
Tennyson really
admires the
soldiers who
fought and
wants his
poetry to be a
way of people
knowing their
story.
This command is
repeated to leave the
reader with
the idea that they
should honour the
cavalry.

This is a rhetorical
question that
challenges the reader
by making them think
about the futility of
their deaths. This is a
poem about
remembrance and
about learning from
our mistakes.
Repeated from
stanza 4 - it
emphasises
people's
amazement at
their bravery.

Sums up the way the

poet wants the
cavalry to be
remembered,
including
the ones who died.