[Intro] The banners fell at dawn Ash covered every name [Verse 1] We crossed the frozen ford With rust beneath our shields The river took the brave And would not give them back Our captain raised one hand The signal split the fog Then every hill replied With thunder from the black [Pre-Chorus] We held the ridge until the sun went red One broken line, a thousand left for dead [Chorus] We lost the battle, not the vow The ground remembers even now Though every sword is buried deep We guard the names the living keep Let kingdoms write that we were gone Our oath still burns at break of dawn We lost the battle, hear us say No grave can take the war away [Verse 2] The eastern gate gave way At half past five that night A child stood in the square And watched the towers fall We passed the final cup Beside the wounded fires Then marched into the dark Too proud to beg or crawl [Pre-Chorus] The drums grew quiet underneath the rain But every heart was beating out the same [Chorus] We lost the battle, not the vow The ground remembers even now Though every sword is buried deep We guard the names the living keep Let kingdoms write that we were gone Our oath still burns at break of dawn We lost the battle, hear us say No grave can take the war away [Bridge] If this is where our road must end Then let the fallen speak again Tell every son and daughter born We chose the shield, we faced the storm No crown, no feast, no victory Could buy the price they paid to me [Guitar Solo] [Final Chorus] We lost the battle, not the vow The ground remembers even now Though every sword is buried deep We guard the names the living keep Let kingdoms write that we were gone Our oath still burns at break of dawn We lost the battle, hear us say No grave can take the war away [Outro] When winter lifts from fields of stone The lost will lead us home
