Which British poet wrote 'The Charge of the Light Brigade'?

Alfred, Lord Tennyson wrote “The Charge of the Light Brigade.” His famous 1854 narrative poem describes the disastrous cavalry charge at the Battle of Balaclava during the Crimean War.

Tennyson was Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom when he wrote the poem. He composed the original version on 2 December 1854 after reading newspaper reports about the battle, and it was published in The Examiner on 9 December. The poem’s repeated rhythm and commands—especially “Cannon to right of them”—create the sensation of troops advancing under fire.

The charge resulted from a misunderstood order and caused heavy casualties, yet Tennyson’s poem emphasizes the soldiers’ courage and obedience. The line “Someone had blundered” preserves the poem’s central tension: the soldiers are celebrated even though the military decision was catastrophically flawed.

Readers sometimes confuse the poem with Tennyson’s “The Charge of the Heavy Brigade,” which concerns a different Crimean War action. “The Charge of the Light Brigade” specifically commemorates Balaclava’s Light Brigade charge.