We Few, We Happy Few...

Never played better, this is the version for the ages...

Today is a actually a holiday, the feast of St. Crispin and his twin Crispinian, twins martyred ca. 286 A.D., and still celebrated and commemorated as such under both Roman Catholic and Anglican traditions.

They were of noble Roman birth, but fled to Gaul during persecution of Christians at the time. They made shoes at night, and preached Christianity by day, until their activities aroused the ire of the Roman governor of Belic Gaul, Rictus Varus, who had them thrown into a river with millstones tied to their necks. This they survived, but were subsequently beheaded by order of the co-emperor Maximian circa 285 or 286 AD, as part of his campaign to militarily pacify Gaulic provinces at that time. The brothers, owing to their main occupation prior to martyrdom, are the patron saints of cobblers, curriers, tanners, and leather workers.

The date is notably famous for Shakespeare's rousing speech by King Henry V before the Battle of Agincourt on this day in 1415. Other famous battles fought on the date are the Battle of Balaclava in 1854, which featured the Charge of the Light Brigade, and the Battle of Leyte Gulf in 1944. (As my drill instructor used to say, "You will see this material again.")

I'm putting a movie in the player today. See if you can guess which one.

Celebrate the day or not as your conscience dictates, but if you've ever been a soldier, a man of arms, a man of letters, or any sort of man at all, you should set upon your Bucket List to be able to recite this speech in its entirety, from memory. Else hold your manhood cheap.