The South Carolina Hymn

​The music and lyrics for this song exist in manuscript form. It is apparently a response to a British outrage against the American navy in the Chesapeake/Leopard affair, and affair which led to the War of 1812 and to John C. Calhoun's entry into national politics. The song is thought to have been used at public events during the antebellum period.

Columbia's sons do greet the sound
That calls them to defend her rights.
The dauntless heart scorns ev'ry wound,
Who in the cause of freedom fights.
Brothers arise, our country calls.
The trumpet sound no heart appalls.
Our rights maintaining with our breath,
We'll fight for liberty or death.

This entry is an excerpt from the book Southern Poets and Poems, 1606 -1860 The Land They Loved, Volume 1, 2024 Shotwell Publishing.