Notes
Words from the singing of Bill Berry. According to Chris Kempster this
song was brought back by Australians returning from a work brigade in
Yugoslavia in the late 1940's. Werner Lowenstein tells me that he learnt
it as boy in Germany and brought it to Australia as a refugee from the
Nazis during World War II. He sang it in the Austral Singers in Melbourne.
As far as I know this English version is only sung in Australia. "On
the castle roof let the Red Cock crow" is a euphamism for burning
the castle down.
The song comes from a German song "Wir sind des Geyers schwarzer
Haufen" ("We are the Black Band of Geyer"). Florian Geyer was a
Franconian Knight who joined the rebels in the German Peasant's War of 1525, rallying
under the Peasantry's famous "Bundschuh" flag, which Brad Tate tells
me is a red black and white flag with a peasant's boot or clog as the emblem.
John Manifold recalls the song being played by BBC broadcasts to Germany during
World War II. He included his 1948 translation of it in his Collected Verses (QUP
1978)
The lines:
"When Adam dug and Eve did toil
No princes
trespassed on their soil"
are remarkably similar to a verse from the
English Peasant's Revolt of 1381:
"When Adam dug and Eve Span
Who
was then the Gentleman?"
Recently I discovered this German version
on the Web at:
http://www.karoshi.de/Bibliothek/Lieder/geyer.htm
Florian Geyer
Wir sind des Geyers schwarzer
Haufen,
Heia Ho Ho,
und wollen mit Tyrannen raufen,
Heia Ho Ho.
Ref.:
Spieß voran, drauf und dran,
setzt aufs Klosterdach den Roten
Hahn.
Als Adam grub und Eva spann,
Heia Ho Ho,
Wo war denn da
der Edelmann.
Heia Ho Ho.
Wir woll'n nicht l¦nger sein ein Knecht,
Heia Ho Ho,
Leibeigen, frönig ohne Recht
Heia Ho Ho.
Ein gleiches
Recht, das woll'n wir han'
Heia Ho Ho,
Vom Fürsten bis zum Bauersmann
Heia Ho Ho.
Uns führt der Florian Geyer an,
Trutz Acht und Bann,
Den Bundschuh führt er in der Fahn,
Hat Helm und Harnisch an.
Jetzt
gilt es Schloß, Abtei und Stift,
Heia Ho Ho,
Uns gilt nichts als die Heilge
Schrift.
Heia Ho Ho.
Wir wollen’s Gott im Himmel klagen,
Heia Ho Ho,
Daß wir die Pfaffen nicht dürfen totschlagen.
Heia Ho Ho.
Den Pfaffen wollen wir kastrier'n
Heia Ho Ho,
Die Eier an die Kirchtür
schmier'n.
Heia Ho Ho.
Bei Weinsberg setzt es Brand und Stank,
Heia Ho Ho,
Gar mancher über die Klinge sprang.
Heia Ho Ho.
(getragen)
Geschlagen ziehen wir nach Haus'
Heia Ho Ho,
Unsre Enkel fechten's besser
aus.
Heia Ho Ho.
I found another German site with Florian Geyer
song at http://ingeb.org/Lieder/wirsindg.html
It gives the name of the authors as Heinrich von Reder, 1885 for the words and
Fritz Sotke, 1919 for the tune
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