Hail, Liberty! Hail! — Kipling Tuesday

Look it up if you want, but the verses below stand well even without their historical context. The Greek National Anthem 1918 We knew thee of old, Oh divinely restored, By the light of thine eyes And the light of thy Sword. From the graves of our slain Shall thy valour prevail As we greet thee again -- Hail, Liberty! Hail! Long time didst thou dwell Mid the peoples that mourn, Awaiting some voice That should bid thee return. Ah, slow broke that day And no man dared call, For the shadow of tyranny Lay over all: And we saw thee sad-eyed, The tears on thy cheeks While thy raiment was dyed In the blood of the Greeks. Yet, behold now thy sons With impetuous breath Go forth to the fight Seeking Freedom or Death. From the graves of our slain Shall thy valour prevail As we greet thee again -- Hail, Liberty! Hail! NOTE: Richard's comment spurs me to note that this is Kipling's translation, versification and expansion of Dionysios Solomos' 1824 Greek text. It takes a poet to translate poetry, just as translation of any literary text takes some artistry and understanding of the originating "heart" (as I discovered in attempting to do so in Koine Greek classes). Imagine that last verse rendered—accurately, though tastelessly—as From the resting place of our murdered Your bravery will last As we meet you again Helloooooo freedom! Blech. Sounds like something that would come out of modern academia, a sort of Ward Churchill plagiarism of real art.