Bonny Light Horseman (The)

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Theme code Index	113 213
Also known as
Composer/Core Source
Region	Ireland
Genre/Style	Irish
Meter/Rhythm	Air/Lament/Listening Piece
Key/Tonic of	F
Accidental	1 flat
Mode	Ionian (Major)
Time signature	3/4
History	IRELAND(Leinster)
Structure	AB
Editor/Compiler	Biography:Charles Villiers Stanford
Book/Manuscript title	Book:Complete Collection of Petrie's Irish Airs
Tune and/or Page number	No. 779, p. 195
Year of publication/Date of MS	1905
Artist
Title of recording
Record label/Catalogue nr.
Year recorded
Media
Score ()

BONNY LIGHT HORSEMAN, THE. Irish, Air (3/4 time). Ireland, County Wexford. F Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AB. Words (via Terry Moylan) set to the air stem from the Napoleonic era, the pinnacle of the dash, glory and uniformed appearance of mounted light troops. They begin:

When Bonaparte he commanded his troops for to stand,
And he planted his cannons all over the land;
He has levelled his cannons the whole victory to gain,
And he's killed my light horseman, returning from Spain.

Broken-hearted I'll wander, for the loss of my lover,
He's my bonny light horseman, in the wars he was slain.

Sure if I was a blackbird and had wings to fly,
I would fly to the spot where my true love does lie;
And with my little fluttering wings, his wounds I would heal,
And it's all the long night on his breast I'd remain.

Source for notated version: "From Mr. Fitzgerald" [Stanford/Petrie].

Printed source: Stanford/Petrie (Complete Collection), 1905; No. 779, p. 195.

X:1
T:Bonny light horseman, The 
M:3/4
L:1/8
R:Air
N:"Andante"
N:"County Wexford"
S:Stanford/Petrie (1905), No. 779
Z:AK/Fiddler's Companion
K:F
A>G | F2 F>G AF | G2F2 A>B| c2 dc B>A | A2G2 A>G | F2 F>G AF | 
G2F2 A>B | c2 dc BA | {A}G4 || cd/e/ | f2 d>e fe | e2c2 cd/e/ | f2 df ed | 
c4 de | f2 d>e fd | c2A2 A>G | F2A2c2 | B2A2G2 | F2 F>G AF | G2F2 AB | 
c2 dc BA | G2F2 cd/e/ | f2d2 fd | c2A2c2 | B2A2G2 | F4 ||