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Trelawny II

as arranged and sung by N. B. Bullen
Lyrics by Robert Stephen Hawker (1804–1875)
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1. A good sword and a trusty hand,
A merry heart and true!
King James's men shall understand
what Cornish lads can do.

And have they fixed the where and when?
And shall Trelawny die?
Here's twenty thousand Cornish men
Will know the reason why!

CHORUS:
And shall Trelawny live?
Or shall Trelawny die?
Here's twenty thousand Cornish men
Will know the reason why!

2.Out spake their Captain brave and bold,
A merry wight was he,
If London Tow'r were Michaels's hold,
we'd set Trelawny free.

We'll cross the Tamar, land to land,
The Severn is no stay,
with "One and All," and hand in hand,
And who shall bid us nay?

CHORUS

3. And when we come to London Wall,
A pleasant sight to view,
Come forth! come forth, ye cowards all!
Here's men as good as you.

Trelawny, he's in keep and hold,
Trelawny, he may die,
But here's twenty thousand Cornish bold
Will know the reason why!

CHORUS

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  For many years "Trelawny" was the chief Cornish song. About 1870, Mr. N. B. Bullen made an arrangement of it which soon became a special feature of his numerous concerts.  In August 1876, he was requested to sing "Trelawny" at a concert in connection with a Great Meeting of Fire Brigades at Chester, and the local papers commenting on it the next day described it as "a feature of the concert."   He also sang it at the consecration Banquet of the Cornish Lodge of Freemasons, Freemasons' Tavern, London, June 19, 1890.
  More about the background of the song
  Who was Trelawny?
  Picture of Trelawny
  More about Trelawny, the man
  To hear a brief rendition of Trelawny. Trelawny (116 KB .wav file)
  Sheet music to Trelawny (courtesy of Yowann Byghan)
  A Cornish Translation of the Lyrics
  Piano Melody line midi file)
  A Brief Trelawny Family History
  More Trelawnys