The Song of the Western Men
"The Song of the Western Men", also known as "Trelawny", is a Cornish patriotic song, composed by Louisa T. Clare for lyrics by Robert Stephen Hawker. The poem was first published anonymously in The Royal Devonport Telegraph and Plymouth Chronicle in September 1826, over 100 years after the events.
Plaque commemorating R. S. Hawker at Charles Church, Plymouth
Robert Stephen Hawker
Robert Stephen Hawker (1803–1875) was a British Anglican priest, poet, antiquarian and reputed eccentric, known to his parishioners as Parson Hawker. He is best known as the writer of "The Song of the Western Men" with its chorus line of "And shall Trelawny die? / Here's twenty thousand Cornish men / will know the reason why!", which he published anonymously in 1825. His name became known after Charles Dickens acknowledged his authorship of "The Song of the Western Men" in the serial magazine Household Words.
Robert Stephen Hawker (1864)
Robert Stephen Hawker 1869
Hawker's Hut
Morwenstow Vicarage