Serbia (Helen Leah Reed, 1915)

The poem “Serbia” was written by the American writer Helen Leah Reed in 1915, and the poem was later published in two of her books, the collections “Remembrance Day and Other Verses” and “Serbia, a Sketch”, both from 1917.

Helen Leah Reed, Serbia (1916)

Serbia, valiant daughter of the Ages,
Happiness and light should be thy portion!
Yet thy day is dimmed, thine heart is heavy;
Long hast thou endured-a little longer
Bear thy burden, for a fair to-morrow
Soon will gleam upon thy flower-spread valleys,
Soon will brighten all thy shadowy mountains;
Soon will sparkle on thy foaming torrents
Rushing toward the world beyond thy rivers.
Bulgar, Turk and Magyar long assailed thee.
Now the Teuton’s cruel hand is on thee
Though he break thy heart and rack thy body,
‘Tis not his to crush thy lofty spirit.
Serbia cannot die. She lives immortal,
Serbia—all thy loyal men bring comfort
Fighting, fighting, and thy far-flung banner
Blazons to the world thy high endeavor,
—This thy strife for brotherhood and freedom—
Like an air-free bird unknowing bondage,
Soaring far from carnage, smoke and tumult,
Serbia—thy soul shall live forever!
Serbia, undaunted is, immortal!

Helen Leah Reed, Memorial Day, and Other Verse (Original and Translated), De Wolfe and Fiske co. 20 Franklin St. Boston, 1917.

Helen Leah Reed, Serbia: A Sketch, 1917.

The poem is a patriotic elegy written by Helen Leah Reed in 1916—published in the 1917 book—specifically to garner support for the Serbian Distress Fund.

The poem functioned as an emotional “call to action.” By casting Serbia as a “valiant daughter” and a “martyred, but heroic little country,” Reed sought to stir the American public’s sympathy. It helped bridge the distance between Americans and the realities of the war in the Balkans by personalizing the nation of Serbia.

The poem highlights a common theme in the literature of that era: the contrast between the “cruel hand” of the aggressors (specifically naming the “Bulgar, Turk, Magyar” and the “Teuton”) and the “lofty spirit” of the Serbian people.

The poem is highly significant because it encapsulates how Serbia was perceived by its American benefactors during the First World War.

The concluding lines, “Serbia—thy soul shall live forever! / Serbia, undaunted is, immortal!” reflect the prevailing hope of the time—that even if the nation’s “body” (territory) was occupied, its “spirit” remained unbroken.

By calling Serbia a “valiant daughter,” Reed taps into a specific type of WWI-era rhetoric that framed smaller, struggling nations as innocent victims in need of protection by more powerful, stable “parents” or allies, like the United States.

The poem serves as a modern bookend to the ancient epic poetry Reed discusses later in the book (like the Battle of Kosovo). It essentially says, “The same spirit that led the heroes of old to choose a heavenly kingdom over an earthly one is still present in the Serbian people today.”

Helen Leah Reed

(St. John’s, March 15, 1864 – Cambridge, July 21, 1926) was an American teacher and writer. She graduated from Radcliffe College, Cambridge; She wrote books for children that were as entertaining as they were informative, and is best remembered for her series of children’s novels “Brenda”.

Helen Leah Reed wrote Serbia: A Sketch (1917) at the urging of Mabel Grujić, wife of Serbian diplomat Slavko Grujić, founder of the Serbian Sisters Circle.

Serbia: A Sketch is an easily readable summary of the history of Serbia up to World War I, with an emphasis on evoking sympathy for the Serbs during World War I.

The book was part of a wave of literature aimed at introducing the American public to the history, culture, and suffering of the Serbian people during WWI. It served to build solidarity for the Allied cause.

The work includes historical context, discussions of the Serbian national spirit, and often references traditional Serbian epic poetry. For example, it frequently draws upon the legend of the Battle of Kosovo (1389) and the figure of Tzar Lazar, who—according to the epic tradition—chose a “heavenly kingdom” over an “earthly one.”

“Serbia: A Sketch” is an educational and patriotic prose work written by an American author to advocate for Serbia during World War I, rather than a standalone musical composition. You can find the full text of the work available on platforms like Project Gutenberg if you are interested in reading the specific passages that may have seemed like song lyrics.

Works by Helen Leah Reid:

The City and the Sea: With Other Cambridge Contributions in Aid of the Hospital Fund (1881)

Miss Theodora: A West End Story (1898)

Napoleon’s Young Neighbor (1907)

Memorial Day, and Other Verse (Original and Translated) (1917)

Serbia: A Sketch (1917)

Brenda, Her School and Her Club (1900)

Brenda’s Summer at Rockley (1901)

Brenda’s Cousin at Radcliffe (1902)

Brenda’s Bargain: A Story for Girls (1903)

Amy in Acadia: A Story for Girls (1905)

Brenda’s Ward: A Sequel to Amy and Acadia (1906)

Irma and Nap (1904)

Irma in Italy: A Travel Story (1908)

Prepared by: Dalibor Drekić

Source: Gutenberg