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As I rambled out one morning,
It been the month of June,
I strayed into an old church yard,
To view another's tomb.
I overheard an old man say,
As the tears rolled from his eyes,
"'Tis 'neath that cold, cold clay today,
Poor Peter Crawley lies."
Oh, the grave where Peter Crawley lies
'Neath the grass grown green;
And underneath poor Peter sleeps,
Because he loved the green.
It grieves my heart to see you there,
A hero once in bloom;
For untimely death that has brought you here,
To fill the silent tomb.
Oh, Crawley, oh, Crawley,
Come tell to me the truth:
Who went along on that night with you,
To clue those lonely woods?
Who stood beside that brave old oak,
And fired that signal gun?
Because you were a young Fenian bold,
And died for Ireland's love.
See more songs by Buddy Wasisname And The Other Fellers.
The Fenian Rising of 1867 was a doomed rebellion against British rule in Ireland, organized by the Irish Republican Brotherhood, popularly known as Fenians. Peter O'Neill Crowley (1832-1867) was born in Ballymacoda, County Cork, Ireland, and was a respected farmer. On March 31, Crowley, along with John Edward Kelly, and John McClure, were surrounded in Kilclooney Wood in the Valley of Aharfoucha by 120 British soldiers. Peter was shot while attemping to cross a stream, and died later that day at nearby Mitchelstown.
