Rifles of the I R A

In nineteen hundred and sixteen
The forces of the Crown
To capture Orange, White, and Green
Bombarded Dublin Town
In '21, Britannia's sons
Were forced to earn their pay, when
The black and tans, like lightening ran
From the Rifles of the IRA!

They burned their way through Munster
Then laid Leinster on the rack
Through Connacht, and through Ulster
Marched the men in brown and black
They shot down wives and children
In their own heroic way, then
The black and tans, like lightening ran
From the Rifles of the IRA!

They hanged young Kevin Barry high
A lad of eighteen years
Cork City's flames lit up in the sky
But our brave men knew no fear
The Cork brigade with hand-grenades
In ambush wait and lay, and
The black and tans, like lightening ran
From the Rifles of the IRA!

The tans were taken out and shot
By a brave and fearless few
Sean Treacy, Dinny Lacey
And Tom Barry's famous crew
We're not free yet
But we won't forget
Until our dying day, when
The black and tans, like lightening ran
From the Rifles of the IRA!

We're not free yet
But we won't forget
Until our dying day, when
The black and tans, like lightening ran
From the Rifles of the IRA!