The Battle

INTRO: C Em  C Em
       Am Em D Em C D C D
       A Em A Em Am Em D Em
       C Em C

                                     Em
In the early dawn the Bishop's men
D               Em
Shivered in the damp
                                 D
But the shiver came not from the cold
    C                     D
And spread throughout the camp
    A                Em
The trembling horses sensed the fear
   A                 Em
Of silent thoughtful men
    Am                    Em
Who prayed that wives and families
      D              Em    C  Em  C
Might see them once again


                                Em
The Bishop sent a dawn patrol
   D                      Em
To investigate the weight
                        D
Of forces at the King's command
  C                  D
Ensconced behind the gate
    A                   Em
The ground mist hid the patrol's approach
        A                    Em
As they drew close enough to show
    Am              Em
The sentries on the battlements
       D               Em    C  Em  C
And an archer drew his bow


                                      Em
From the topmost tower a sentry fell
      D                 Em
As an arrow pierced his skull
                          D
And his headlong flight into the moat
C                D
Seemed that of a gull
    A               Em
The patrol reported little
          A               Em
There was nothing much to see
        Am                Em
But the strong and silent castle
  D             Em    C  Em  C
A symbol of the free


        N.C.           Em
The King's men took communion
N.C.   D  N.C.           Em
As the first rays of the sun
N.C.                D     N.C.
Lit up the chapel's gloomy walls
    C           D
The fatal day begun
         A                Em
From the castle green the rooks took flight
       A                 Em
To the high trees in the east
         Am                Em
To their carrion minds the battlefield
      D           Em     C  Em  C
Set a table for a feast


                                    Em
A tide of black, the Bishop's men
D              Em
Equality their right
                   D
Swarmed like ants across the hill
      C              D
Their aim at last in sight
    A                     Em
The King's men dressed in purest white
     A              Em
Were driven back by force
        Am                 Em
And the fighting grew more violent
       D               Em     C  Em  C
As the battle took its course


                             Em
The Bishops gave the order
    D           Em
"No mercy to be shown.
                   D
The sacrifice will reap rewards
         C           D
When the King is overthrown"
    A                 Em
The sight of children lying dead
     A                 Em
Made hardened soldiers weep
    Am            Em
The outer walls began to fall
     D                 Em    C  Em  C
They moved towards the keep


                                    Em
The rooks surveyed the battlefield
      D            Em
Their hungry beady eyes
                         D
Revelled in the sight of death
C             D
Showing no surprise
    A                Em
The pressure mounted steadily
       A                  Em
As the Bishops neared the gate
        Am                    Em
And the desperate King called to his knights
           D            Em      C  Em  C
"It's your lives or the state"


                                     Em
When the anxious King began to fail
   D               Em
As many thought he might
                        D
The Queen ran screaming round the walls
    C                D
And urged the men to fight
    A                 Em
The Bishops' men were tiring
       A              Em
As the afternoon grew late
        Am                     Em
And the King's men lowered the drawbridge
    D                      Em     C  Em  C
And poured out through the gate


                                        Em
They fought their way across the bridge
    D                Em
The men like falling leaves
                     D
Or ears of corn that fall in swathes
    C              D
The vicious sickle cleaves
    A            Em
The tide receded up the hill
    A                  Em
The waste of reclaimed land
Am            Em
Once decaying swamp became
  D                   Em   C  Em  C
A shore of pure white sand


                                    Em
A blinded priest was seen to bless
     D             Em
Both dying and the dead
                          D
As he stumbled around the battlefield
    C               D
His cassock running red
   A                     Em
If uniform were black or white
    A                Em
His eyes could never see
    Am               Em
And death made no distinction
    D           Em   C  Em  C
Whatever man he be


                                     Em
As darkness fell both camps withdrew
      D                   Em
Their soldiers slain like cattle
                     D
Leaving the rooks to feast alone
    C              D
The victors of the battle
   F#m          Em
At evensong the camps reviewed
      F#m          Em
Their sad depleted ranks
      D             C
As survivors of the battle
     Bm  D              A
Gave god their grateful thanks