The Charge of the Light Brigade by Alfred, Lord Tennyson

Alfred, Lord Tennyson

Like so many writers and poets, Tennyson took little interest in his school work and studies. He went to Cambridge, but he idled through his studies and never completed a degree. He sought company with friends who inspired him and encouraged him to follow his poetic vocation.

His early writing was not given much attention by his contemporary critics, but Tennyson was determined to succeed and worked indefatigably to perfect his art.

In the 1840s, he gradually won the acclaim of the reading public, and in 1850, he was appointed Poet Laureate by Queen Victoria.

Tennyson was very productive during his later life. He was a versatile writer; his writing includes poems, drama, essays and religious and philosophical reflections. His popularity and his contribution to Victorian literature have given him an indisputable position in the English literary tradition.

The poem celebrates the heroism of cavalry soldiers who fought a battle in the Crimean war.

The Crimean war was a result of Britain and France wanting to prevent Russian expansion into the areas around the Black Sea. These areas belonged to the Ottoman Empire, which was in decline.

It was a slow and gruesome war, fought on horseback with sabres, with primitive guns, and with cannons that mutilated more than they killed. The British troops were badly organised and had not done much fighting since the Napoleonic Wars. On top of that, some of the British officers were only interested in glory for themselves, and had little regard for soldiers' lives if sacrificing them would bolster their own reputations.

The Crimean town Balaklava was held by British, French, and Ottoman forces, but the Russians mobilised a large unit and charged to recapture the town. The Russians were defeated, but both sides suffered great losses. During this battle, there was an incident where a small British cavalry unit, a light brigade, was sent into a valley to attack a Russian position. It was quite obvious that they did not stand a chance against the strong Russian unit, but the attack was launched anyway due to stubbornness and rivalry between high-ranking British officers.

The brigade was nearly wiped out; less than a third of the 600 men of the light brigade survived.

The Crimean War was the first war that was given day-to-day coverage in the newspapers, due to the newly invented telegraph.