ABSTRACT
Although this song appears to have had low distribution, with only one copy existing in the Bodleian collection and no evidence of reprinting elsewhere, Lamentation of the Sailors & Soldiers Wives for the loss of their Husbands was a significant tribute to the sacrifice of soldiers in the Napoleonic wars. Its call to recognise the distressed conditions of army families in soldiers’ absence was reflected elsewhere. At least since the last decades of the eighteenth century, observers had remarked upon the poor circumstances of soldiers’ dependants who were left behind after troops went abroad. 7 The ballad implicitly demanded reform to the system that “grumbled” when it received appeals from these deserving objects of assistance. This ballad supported those who were trying to raise money for the Royal Military Asylum and other charities seeking to aid army families in the absence from any direct assistance from the army itself. Implicit here as well was a message that wives’ sacrifice in giving up their claims to husband’s labour and presence at home was their contribution to the war effort, and needed to be recognised (and rewarded) as such.
