When a knight won his spurs, in the stories of old
When a knight won his spurs, in the stories of old. Jan Struther* (1901-53).
This was written for SofPE (1931), to fit the tune STOWEY, so named because it was a Somerset folk tune collected by Cecil Sharp* from an 85-year-old man at Bridgwater, near Nether Stowey. Its arresting first line was calculated to arouse the interest of children, although the second stanza brings them down to earth with a jolt, insisting that ‘the knights are no more and the dragons are dead’:
When a knight won his spurs, in the stories of old,He was gentle and brave, he was gallant and bold;With a shield on his arm and a lance in his handFor God and for valour he rode through the land.
No charger have I, and no...
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. "When a knight won his spurs, in the stories of old."
The Canterbury Dictionary of Hymnology. Canterbury Press. Web. 24 Jan. 2026.<
http://www.hymnology.co.uk/w/when-a-knight-won-his-spurs,-in-the-stories-of-old>.
Chicago style (see The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th Ed.)
. "When a knight won his spurs, in the stories of old."
The Canterbury Dictionary of Hymnology. Canterbury Press, accessed January 24, 2026,
http://www.hymnology.co.uk/w/when-a-knight-won-his-spurs,-in-the-stories-of-old.