Cadgwith Anthem
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A good deal of unsubstantiated and sometimes conflicting folklore has grown up around the supposed origins of this song, often attributing it to Cornish fishermen in or around the village of Cadgwith; however, the earliest known connection with Cadgwith is Peter Kennedy's collecting the song there in the 1950s, which also seems to be the origin of the title "Cadgwith Anthem".[1] The oldest print evidence of the song, meanwhile, dates to its inclusion in The Handy Man Afloat & Ashore, a 1901 book by Rev. George Goodenough, drawing on his experiences as a naval chaplain in the 1880s-90s.[2] That version, titled "The Robber's Retreat", only includes two verses, though The Naval Song Book, published 1906, has four verses substantially similar to the modern ones and credits Goodenough as the source.[3] Since Kennedy's recording, the song has been sung by a wide variety of artists, including Dick Gaughan, Tommy Morissey, and Steeleye Span.
The band released a music video for the song in November 2022. It was filmed while they were on tour in the United States, where Robbie, due to visa issues, was unable to join them and was replaced during gigs by iRobert — a video of Robbie's face on an iPad, perched atop a hanging rack of his clothing. As a nod to this setup, in the video he is played by Caz, the band's sound engineer, dressed in Robbie's dungarees and holding the iRobert iPad in front of her face.
The song was later included on the fifth Pieces of Eight EP, Brigand, released on 4 July 2025.
Factoids
The meaning of the phrase beauty of Kashmir has been the subject of much debate. The most common opinion seems to be that it refers to some kind of flower, perhaps a variety of rose. Other suggestions include the name of a ship ("drooping its head" allegedly meaning "down at the bow", referring to smugglers or thieves robbing shipwrecks), the name of a race horse, or a reference to the Kashmir region, which would have been part of the British empire at the time.[4] No concrete evidence is known to support any of these theories, though it may be worth noting that the earliest print sources give the phrase as "beautiful cashmere", uncapitalized, suggesting those sources, at least, may not have understood it as a proper name.
The same lyrics, sometimes with a different tune, have also been found under the title "Candleford Anthem". Candleford is a fictional village from a trilogy of novels about rural English life published in the early 1940s; how it came to be associated with the song is unknown.
Lyrics
As performed on Pieces of Eight.
Come fill up your glasses
(And let us be merry!)
For to rob and to plunder
(It is our intent)
{Chorus}
As we roam through the valleys
Where the lilies and the roses
And the beauty of Kashmir lay drooping its head
Then away (then away) then away (then away) then away
To those caves in yonder mountains where the robbers retreat
Hark, hark, in the distance
(There's footsteps approaching)
Stand, stand and deliver!
(It is our watch cry)
{Chorus}
So we stuffed up our pockets
(With gold and with jewels)
And we made for the forest
(With the hounds in full cry)
{Chorus}
Come lift up your glasses
(And let us be merry!)
As the moonbeams are shining
(Right over our heads)
{Chorus}