The village square stands quiet 
 The curfew still enforced 
 The streets are even clear of dogs and whores 
 Like some evil bird-of-prey 
 The scaffold spreads its wings 
 The people build their fires and bolt their doors 

The mayor is giving dinner to the officers’ wives 
 His eldest son is learning how to fawn 
 The barrick block is hushed and tense 
 The soldiers drawing lots 
 Who will be the hangman in the dawn? 

The lot falls on a young man 
 Who has served for but a year 
 His home is in the village close nearby 
 He shivers at the thought of what 
 He’s forced to do next day 
 He wonders who it is who has to die? 

And the full moon casts a cold light 
 On the gloomy prison walls 
 The papist walks his cell 
 He cannot sleep 
 He hears the waiting gallows creaking 
 Just beyond that door 
 He prays for he has no more tears to weep 

The day begins to break 
 muffled [bad word] begins to sound 
 crowd begins to gather in the square 
 The presence of the hangman 
 In his terrifying mask 
 Weighs heavy on the minds of all those there 
 The colonel reads the sentence 
 Which the papist knows by heart: 
 He has failed to show alliegence to the king 
 His crime is thus with God himself 
 And in his name he must hang 
 The papist, head held high 
 Says not a thing 

The jailer binds his hands 
 And puts his blindfold to his eyes 
 He leads him through the door before the crowd 
 The hangman sees his victim 
 And the blood drains from his face: 
 He sees his younger brother standing proud 
 The hangman tries to protest 
 But is ordered to proceed 
 His trembling hands begin to take the strain 
 His eyes are blind with streaming tears 
 And he cries for all to hear: 

Forgive me God we hang him in thy name! 
 Forgive me God we hang him in thy name! 
 Forgive me God we hang him in thy name! 
 Oh please forgive me God we hang him in thy name! 
 Forgive me God we hang him in thy name!