1. The poem describes the disastrous Charge of the Light Brigade during the Crimean War in 1854, in which 600 British cavalrymen were sent on a suicidal mission and suffered heavy losses due to a misunderstood order. 2. The poem uses powerful imagery to depict the cavalry riding into battle despite knowing it was a fatal mistake, as they were surrounded on all sides by Russian cannons. Through repetition and military-inspired rhythm, the poem conveys the chaos and horror of the battle. 3. Ultimately, the poem serves as a tribute to the bravery and sacrifice of the Light Brigade, as Tennyson calls for honoring their doomed yet heroic charge through remembering their story.

1. The Charge of the Light Brigade
Alfred Tennyson
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 Poet Laureate
from 185O to 1892.
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.
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 Parliament is on
the next slide.
The Crimean War 1854-1856
•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
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 of
course god america i'.

2. ‘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 two more regiments of cavalry, which
continued to perform the duty of cutting down the Russian gunners. Then came the third line, formed of
another regiment, which endeavoured to complete the duty assigned to our brigade. …’
(Lord Cardigan’s address to the House of Commons, 29 March 1855)

4. 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.
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.
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
forever by the fallen men; it
now belongs to Death.
Suggests that not everyone is
going ‘onward’.
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.
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
chaotic battle.

5. 2.
‘Forward, the Light Brigade!’
Was there a man dismay’d?
Not tho’ the soldier knew
Some one had blunder’d:
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.
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
against their enemies, and many of
them were killed.
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.
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.

6. 3.
Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them
Volley’d and thunder’d;
Storm’d 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 monosyllabic words
after ‘cannon’ sound like
a fast-paced, relentless
bombardment of shells
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 surviving
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.
Alliteration of the letter ‘s’
emphasises the idea of
ammunition flying towards
them.
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.
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 men’s lives have
been snatched from them suddenly and violently.
The first three stanzas end
with the same line. It adds to
the sense of foreboding and
reminds us of the number of
soldiers.

7. 4.
Flash’d all their sabres bare,
Flash’d as they turn’d in air
Sabring the gunners there,
Charging an army, while
All the world wonder’d:
Plunged in the battery-smoke
Right thro’ the line they broke;
Cossack and Russian
Reel’d from the sabre-stroke
Shatter’d and sunder’d.
Then they rode back, but not
Not the six hundred.
The repetition of the onomatopoeic word
‘Flash’d’ (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.
The third line
reminds us that the
cavalry only had
swords against the
Russian guns.
The fifth line could mean that
people marvelled at their
bravery and also wondered why
they had been sent on the
charge.
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.
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
aggressive sounds.
The alliteration in this line
sounds vicious however the
onomatopoeic word
‘shattered’ helps us to imagine
the men and valley as broken.
Although it sounds like
they've been successful,
it's clear that some of
them have been killed.

8. 5.
Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon behind them
Volley’d and thunder’d;
Storm’d 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 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 sense of
admiration is
touched with
sadness.
The repetition reminds
us that lives have been
lost, and makes the
poem sound sad.

9. 6.
When can their glory fade?
O the wild charge they made!
All the world wonder’d.
Honour the charge they made!
Honour the Light Brigade,
Noble six hundred!
Sums up the way the poet
wants the cavalry to be
remembered, including
the ones who died.
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.
Sounds dramatic
and daring.
Tennyson really
admires the soldiers
who fought and
wants his poetry to
be a way of people
knowing their story.
Repeated from stanza
4 - it emphasises
people's amazement at
their bravery.
This command is repeated to
leave the reader with
the idea that they should
honour the cavalry.

10. 6.
When can their glory fade?
O the wild charge they made!
All the world wonder’d.
Honour the charge they made!
Honour the Light Brigade,
Noble six hundred!
Sums up the way the poet
wants the cavalry to be
remembered, including
the ones who died.
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.
Sounds dramatic
and daring.
Tennyson really
admires the soldiers
who fought and
wants his poetry to
be a way of people
knowing their story.
Repeated from stanza
4 - it emphasises
people's amazement at
their bravery.
This command is repeated to
leave the reader with
the idea that they should
honour the cavalry.