God of our fathers, known of old

God of our fathers, known of old. Rudyard Kipling* (1865-1936). This poem was written for the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1897, and printed in The Times on 17 July. It was included in Kipling’s collection, The Five Nations (1903), with the title ‘Recessional’. It was a commentary and a warning about the British Empire. In order to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee, contingents from all over the world had come to pay homage to the Queen and Empress. There was a huge procession in London, and a magnificent display of the British navy. All these are referred to in the poem, which urges the country, wild with excitement and patriotic enthusiasm, not to forget God and not to indulge in...