''Soldiers of the Queen'' is a song written and composed by

Leslie Stuart Leslie Stuart (15 March 1863 – 27 March 1928) born Thomas Augustine Barrett was an English composer of Edwardian musical comedy, best known for the hit show '' Florodora'' (1899) and many popular songs. He began in Manchester as a church org ...

. The song is often sung and published as "Soldiers of the King" depending on the reigning monarch at the time. The tune was originally composed by Stuart as a march celebrating the opening of the Manchester Ship Canal. The lyrics were added at a later date and the title changed. The song was then interpolated in the musical comedy ''

An Artist's Model ''An Artist's Model'' is a two-act musical by Owen Hall, with lyrics by Harry Greenbank and music by Sidney Jones, with additional songs by Joseph and Mary Watson, Paul Lincke, Frederick Ross, Henry Hamilton and Leopold Wenzel. It opened at Daly' ...

'' (1895). The song served as the regimental (quick) march of the

Queen's Regiment The Queen's Regiment (QUEENS) was an infantry regiment of the British Army formed in 1966 through the amalgamation of the four regiments of the Home Counties Brigade. Then, until 1971 the regiment remained one of the largest regiments in the ar ...

, 1966–1992. In 1992 the Queens Regiment and Royal Hampshires became the

Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (or PWRR, also known as 'The Tigers') is the senior English line infantry regiment of the British Army, second in the line infantry order of precedence to the Royal Regiment of Scotland and part of the Q ...

who now use the song ''Soldiers of the Queen'' as their regimental song (at the end of the song the Regiment then sing "Farmer's boy" to show their links to R Hampshire) It is also the regimental march of the combined 2nd and 14th Light Horse Regiment, 2nd/14th Light Horse Regiment (Queensland Mounted Infantry); the

Women's Royal Australian Army Corps The Women's Royal Australian Army Corps (WRAAC) was formed as an all women's corps of the Australian Army in April 1951. Its Colonel-in-Chief was Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon. The purpose of the corps was to counter a personnel shorta ...

and the

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, the second most senior of Canada's Cavalry Regiments. It was used as the ''

de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...

'' marchpast of the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

during the

Diamond Jubilee Armed Forces Parade and Muster The Diamond Jubilee Armed Forces Parade and Muster was a military parade held at Windsor Castle and Home Park in Windsor, Berkshire, England, organised as part of the Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee celebrations. Performed as a tribute to the ...

. The song was sung by the public attending a farewell function in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

, Australia, the day before the departure of the 1st contingent QMI, to the

Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...

. It was again sung as the contingent left Brisbane on board S.S. Cornwall on 1 November 1899. It was used as the theme to the film, ''

Breaker Morant Harry "The Breaker" Harbord Morant (born Edwin Henry Murrant, 9 December 1864 – 27 February 1902), more popularly known as Breaker Morant, was an Anglo-Australian drover, horseman, bush poet, military officer, and war criminal who was co ...

''.

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...

comedy programme '' The Harpoon'', a show lampooning boys' magazines from Britain's

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

days of the 20th century, also used the piece as its opening theme—which is harshly interrupted mid-stanza by a page-turn. The song has no connection to "''The Soldiers of Our Queen''", a quite different song which appears in the Gilbert and Sullivan opera ''

Patience (or forbearance) is the ability to endure difficult circumstances. Patience may involve perseverance in the face of delay; tolerance of provocation without responding in disrespect/anger; or forbearance when under strain, especially when face ...

''.

Lyrics

Soldiers of the Queen by Leslie Stuart 1898: ;1 :Britons once did loyally declaim :About the way we rul'd the waves :Ev'ry Briton's song was just the same, :When singing of our soldier braves. :All the world had heard it ::wonder'd why we sang, :And some have learn'd the reason why :But we're forgetting it, :And we're letting it :Fade away and gradually die, :Fade away and gradually die. :So when we say that England's master, :Remember who has made her so ;1st Refrain :It's the Soldiers of the Queen, my lads :Who've been my lads, :Who're seen my lads, :In the fight for England's glory, lads, :When we've had to show them what we mean: :And when we say we've always won, :And when they ask us how it's done, :We'll proudly point to ev'ry one :: of England's soldiers of the Queen! :It's the Queen! ;2 :War clouds gather over ev'ry land, :Our flag is threaten'd east and west. :Nations that we've shaken by the hand :Our bold resources try to test :They thought they found us sleeping ::thought us unprepar'd, :Because we have our party wars, :But Englishmen unite when they're call'd to fight :The battle for Old England's common cause, :The battle for Old England's common cause. :So when we say that England's master, :Remember who has made her so. ;2nd/3rd Refrains :It's the Soldiers of the Queen, my lads, :Who've been my lads, :Who're seen my lads, :In the fight for England's glory, lads, :When we have to show them what we mean: :And when we say we've always won, :And when they ask us how it's done, :We'll proudly point to ev'ry one ::Of England's soldiers of the Queen! :It's the Queen! ;3 :Now we're rous'd we've buckled on our swords, :We've done with diplomatic lingo, :We'll do deeds to follow on our words, :We'll show we're something more than "jingo." :And though Old England's laws do not her sons compel ::To military duties do, :We'll play them at their game, and show them all the same, :An Englishman can be a soldier too, :An Englishman can be a soldier too. :So when we say that England's master, :Remember who has made her so. ; Refrain

References

External links

Sheet music at the Internet Archive
retrieved 7/30/2019
Gramophone recording 1910 Disques Edison Diamond (40184)
retrieved 7/30/2019 {{DEFAULTSORT:Soldiers Of The King British military marches Songs about soldiers Songs about the military Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment Songs written by Leslie Stuart