Chords for Saint Patrick's Battalion (David Rovics)

_ Give me a T.
T!
Give me an R.
R!
Give me an E.
E!
Give me an A.
A!
Give me an S.
S!
Give me an O.
O!
Give me an N.
N!
What's that spell?
Treason!
What's that spell?
Treason!
One more time!
Treason!
You're all gonna get arrested.
_ _ _ [D] _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [E] _
_ My name is John Riley. _
I'll have your ear only a while. _
[G] I left my [B] dear home in Ireland.
[Bm] It was death, starvation, or exile. _ _
[G] _ When I got [B] to America, _
[G] it was my duty [Bm] to go. _ _
[D] _ [G] Enter the army and slog across [Bm] Texas
to join in the war against Mexico. _
_ _ _ [B] And it was there in the pueblos and hillsides
that I saw the [G#] mistake I had [B] made.
_ [G] Part of a [Bm] conquering army
with the morals of a bayonet blade.
[A] _ [G] And there amidst all these poor [B] dying Catholics,
[G] screaming children, the burning stench of [Bm] it all,
_ myself [G]
and 200 _ Irishmen
_ [A] decided to rise to [Bm] the call.
[F#] From [G] Dublin City to [Bm] San [B] Diego,
_ [A] we witnessed freedom [B] denied.
So [G] we formed the St.
[D] Patrick Battalion
and [A] we fought on the Mexican [B] side.
_ [G] We formed the St.
[D] Patrick Battalion
[B] and we fought on the Mexican [B] _ side. _ _
_ _ [C#m] We marched near the green flag of St.
[E] Patrick,
_ [G] emblazoned [B] with Aaron Goldbrau,
_ _ [G] bright with the harp [A] and the shamrock
and libertad para _ [B]
Mexicana.
_ _ [G] Just 50 years after [B] Wolf Tone,
_ [G] 5,000 [Bm] miles away,
the Yanks called us a [G] legion of strangers
_ [A] and they can talk [Bm] as they may.
But from [G] Dublin City to [D] San Diego,
_ _ [A] we witnessed [Bm] freedom denied.
_ So [G] we formed the St.
Patrick [D] Battalion
[A] and we fought on the [Bm] Mexican [A] side.
[G] We formed the St.
[Dm] Patrick [A] Battalion
and we fought [B] on the Mexican side.
[Bm] _ _ _ _ _
[D] We fought them in Matamoros,
[G] where their volunteers [D] were raping the nuns. _ _
[G] In Monterey and [D] Cerro Gordo, _
we fought on as [Bm] Ireland's sons. _
[G] We were the red-headed [D] fighters for freedom _ _
[G] amidst these brown-skinned women [Bm] and men. _
Side by [D] side we fought against [G] tyranny
and [A] I dare say we'd do it [Bm] again.
From Dublin [G] City _ to [D] San Diego,
_ _ [A] we witnessed [B] freedom denied.
So [G] we formed the St.
Patrick [D]
Battalion
[A] and we fought on the Mexican _
[Bm] side.
[G] We formed the St.
[D] Patrick Battalion
and [A] we fought on the Mexican [B] side.
_ _ [D] _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ [G] _ _ _ _ _
[D] _ _ _ [G] _ _ _ _ [D] _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
[Bm] _ _ [G] _ _ _ _ _ [D] _
_ _ [B] _ _ [G] _ _ _ _
[Bm] _ _ _ [D] _ _ _ _ _
[G] _ _ _ _ [A] _ _ _ _
[Bm] _ _ [C#] _ _ [G] _ _ [D] _ _
_ _ _ _ [A] _ _ _ _
[Bm] _ _ _ _ [G] _ _ _ [D] _
_ _ [B] _ _ _ _ _ _
[Bm] _ _ _ [G] _ _ _ _ [D] _
_ _ [B] _ _ _ _ _ _
[Bm] _ _ _ [A] We fought them in five major battles.
_ [G] Churubusco was the last.
[B] _ _ Overwhelmed by the cannons [D] from Boston,
_ we fell after each [Bm] mortar blast.
_ _ [G] Most of us died [D] on that hillside
_ [G] in the service of the Mexican [Bm] state.
_ _ [D] So far [G] from our occupied homeland,
_ [D] we [A] were heroes and [Bm] victims of fate.
[B] [G] From Dublin City to San [D] Diego,
_ [A] we witnessed freedom [B] denied.
So we formed the St.
Patrick [D] Battalion
_ [E] and [A] we fought on the Mexican [Bm] side.
From [G] Dublin City to [D] San Diego,
[B] _ _
[A] we witnessed freedom denied.
So [G] we formed the St.
[D] Patrick Battalion
_ and we fought on the [Bm] Mexican side. _
[G] We formed the St.
Patrick [D] Battalion
_ and [E] we fought on the [C#m] [Bm] Mexican side. _
_ _ [Cm] _ _ _ [N] Thank you. _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _