When building began in the 1820s, towards the end of the Napoleonic Wars, the purpose of Fort Perch Rock was to defend the Port of Liverpool. It sits on an area known as Black Rock in New Brighton, where the River Mersey flows into the sea.
The Fort and the nearby Perch Rock Light were a welcoming sight to many weary travellers and fishermen returning home to England.
Lyrics
TO THE ROCK (FORT PERCH)
We have ploughed o’er the waves for a cran: our meagre pay
O’er The Celtic Sea to Atlantic gales
We have chanced our lives as we worked our endless shift
Then the cry goes out: To the wind heave on boys
To the wind let her go
Heave on home
To The Rock: To The Rock
Where The Mersey meets the sea
To The Rock where me Judy waits for me
As we pray every wave we will know we’re home and safe
When we sight Fort Perch Rock starboard ho
Starboard ho
With our earned dignity laid across the endless sea
O’er this watery grave with our faith in God
For our precious catch we have sailed our luck
Then the cry goes out: To the wind heave on boys
To the wind let her go
Heave on home
Then the cry goes out: To the wind heave on boys
To the wind let her go
Heave on home
To The Rock: To The Rock
Where The Mersey meets the sea
To The Rock where me Judy waits for me
As we pray every wave we will know we’re home and safe
When we sight Fort Perch Rock starboard ho
Words & Music © Faulkner