St Patrick’s Battalion - David Rovics (Cover) by Seth Staton Watkins

St Patrick’s Battalion - David Rovics (Cover) by Seth Staton Watkins St. Patrick’s Battalion is the story of the Irishmen who fought and died for the Mexican army, after having defected from the imperialist forces of the United States. They were joined by other immigrants, German and Polish, and escaped slaves to fight for the sovereignty and freedom of the Mexican people. It is a story of true heroism in the face of great adversity. And these men deserve their immortal place in this song. Sing along! Lyrics: My name is John Riley I’ll have your ear only a while I left my dear home in Ireland It was death, starvation or exile And when I got to America It was my duty to go Enter the Army and slog across Texas To join in the war against Mexico It was there in the pueblos and hillsides That I saw the mistake I had made Part of a conquering army With the morals of a bayonet blade So in the midst of these poor, dying Catholics Screaming children, the burning stench of it all Myself and two hundred Irishmen Decided to rise to the call From Dublin City to San Diego We witnessed freedom denied So we formed the Saint Patrick Battalion And we fought on the Mexican side We marched ’neath the green flag of Saint Patrick Emblazoned with “Erin Go Bragh“ Bright with the harp and the shamrock And “Libertad para Mexicana“ Just fifty years after Wolftone Five thousand miles away The Yanks called us a Legion of Strangers And they can talk as they may From Dublin City to San Diego We witnessed freedom denied So we formed the Saint Patrick Battalion And we fought on the Mexican side We fought them in Matamoros Where their volunteers were raping the nuns In Monterey and Cerro Gordo We fought on as Ireland’s sons We were the red-headed fighters for freedom Amidst these brown-skinned women and men Side by side we fought against tyranny And I daresay we’d do it again From Dublin City to San Diego We witnessed freedom denied So we formed the Saint Patrick Battalion And we fought on the Mexican side We fought them in five major battles Churubusco was the last Overwhelmed by the cannons from Boston We fell after each mortar blast Most of us died on that hillside In the service of the Mexican state So far from our occupied homeland We were heroes and victims of fate From Dublin City to San Diego We witnessed freedom denied So we formed the Saint Patrick Battalion And we fought on the Mexican side