The World Turned Upside Down
Sung to the tune of “When the King enjoys his own again”
In sixteen forty-nine to Saint George’s Hill
A ragged band they called the Diggers came to show the
people’s will
They defied the landlords, they defied the law
They were the dispossessed, reclaiming what was theirs
“We come in peace,” they said, “to dig and sow
We come to work the land in common and to make the
waste ground grow
This earth divided we will make whole
So it can be a common treasury for all
The sin of property we do disdain
No man has any right to buy and sell the earth for
private gain
By theft and murder they steal the land
Now everywhere the walls rise up at their command
They make the laws to chain us well
The clergy dazzle us with heaven or they damn us into hell
We will not worship the god they serve
The god of greed who feeds the rich while poor folk starve
We work, we eat together, we need no swords
We will not bow to the masters or pay rent to the lords
Still we are free men though we are poor
You Diggers all, stand up for glory, stand up now
From the men of property the order came
They sent the hired men and troopers to wipe out the
Diggers’ claim
Tear down their cottages, destroy their corn
They were dispersed, but still the vision carries on
You poor, take courage, you rich, take care
This earth was made a common treasury for everyone
to share
All things in common, all people one
We come in peace, the order came to cut them down
You Diggers all, stand up for glory, stand up now
Note: The diggers were religious and political dissidents in 1649 England who believed in economic equality and made attempts to farm on common land. They were driven from one county to another by the authorities. They were among the founders of early utopian communists.