Jump To:

• John Brown's Body
  John Brown's Body

  noun

  a long narrative poem (1928) by Stephen Vincent Benét, about the U.S. Civil War.
• “John Brown's Body”
  “John Brown's Body”

  A song of the Civil War that pays tribute to the abolitionist John Brown (see abolitionism). It begins, “John Brown's body lies a-moldering in the grave.”

John Brown's Body

American  

noun

1. a long narrative poem (1928) by Stephen Vincent Benét, about the U.S. Civil War.

---

“John Brown's Body” Cultural  

1. A song of the Civil War that pays tribute to the abolitionist John Brown (see abolitionism). It begins, “John Brown's body lies a-moldering in the grave.”

---

Discover More

“The Battle Hymn of the Republic” was written to the tune of “John Brown's Body.”

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

John Brown's Body “John Brown's Body”

It was introduced in 1897, initially to the tune of the American abolitionist folk song, John Brown's Body.

From BBC ● Jan. 27, 2020

A 1948 limited edition copy of "John Brown's Body," the Stephen Vincent Benet poem?

From Fox News ● Dec. 22, 2018

“Since I was a kid there’s always been a strong scene here,” says Elliot Martin, lead singer with the nationally acclaimed band John Brown’s Body.

From The Guardian ● Nov. 20, 2018

He employs no impelling format such as Stephen Vincent Benet's in John Brown's Body.

From Time Magazine Archive

In spite of himself, the tune of "John Brown's Body" had crept in among his ideas.

From Three Soldiers by Dos Passos, John

“The Battle Hymn of the Republic” and “John Brown’s Body” gave voice to the Union cause while “Dixie,” conceived and originally performed as part of a minstrel review, soon became the anthem of the Confederacy.

From Washington Times ● Jun. 17, 2019

“John Brown’s Body” as performed by Pete Seeger - You may hear the tune and think that this is a variant of the “Battle Hymn of the Republic,” but you’d be wrong.

From Forbes ● Jan. 22, 2012

Troops marched into battle to the strains of “John Brown’s Body” or “Maryland, My Maryland” being played by regimental bands, which flourished in the war’s early years.

From Washington Post

And he struck up “John Brown’s Body” in a fine sweet baritone: “Dandy Jim of Carolina” came next; “Rorin the Bold,” “Swing low, Sweet Chariot,” and “The Beautiful Land” followed.

From The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson - Swanston Edition Vol. XIX (of 25) The Ebb-Tide; Weir of Hermiston by Stevenson, Robert Louis