Editing Fiddler's Green

{{Short description|Legendary afterlife in English maritime folk}}
{{other uses}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2014}}
'''Fiddler's Green''' is an [[after-life]] where there is perpetual [[wikt:mirth|mirth]], a [[fiddle]] that never stops playing, and dancers who never tire.
In 19th-century [[England|English]] maritime folklore, it was a kind of after-life for [[sailors]] who had served at least fifty years at sea.<ref>{{cite book|title=Don't Shoot the Albatross!: Nautical Myths and Superstitions|first=Jonathan|last=Eyers|publisher=A&C Black|location=London|date=March 1, 2012|isbn=978-1-4081-3131-2}}.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R4s9AAAAYAAJ&q=Fiddler%27s+Green&pg=RA2-PA168|title=The Sailor's magazine, and naval journal – American Seamen's Friend Society|date=February 1898|page=168|work=Life on the Ocean|access-date=October 14, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=[[A Dictionary of Modern Slang, Cant, and Vulgar Words]]|first=John Camden|last=Hotten|year=1859|publisher=Kessinger |isbn=978-1164343998}}</ref>

==In literature==
Not all early mentions of Fiddler's Green are positive. For example, Edward Rose's ''The Sea-Devil, or, Son of a Bellows-Mender'' (1811) has the following dialogue:<ref>{{cite book | last=Rose | first=Edward | title=The Sea-Devil, or, Son of a Bellows-Mender | publication-place=Plymouth-Dock | publisher=J. Roach | year=1811 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yTpWAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA24 | pages=24–25 }}</ref>
{{blockquote|"a seaman never goes to hell—Fiddler's green is the tar's mooring-ground." "And where is Fiddler's green?" [...] {{"'}}tis the half-way house. A rare place sure enough, where Old Nick is employed to mix hot grog for sailors."}}

and a description published in a number of magazines around 1825:<ref>{{cite magazine | title=Bachelor's elysium | magazine=New York Mirror | volume=3 | issue=2 | date=6 August 1825 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vcNCAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA10 | page=10 }}</ref>
{{blockquote|We are informed that there is in the other world, a place prepared for maids and bachelors called Fiddler's Green, where they are condemned, for the lack of good fellowship in this world, to dance together to all eternity.}}

More positively, Fiddler's Green is mentioned in [[Frederick Marryat]]'s novel ''Snarleyyow; or, The Dog Fiend'' (1837), in a sailors' song with the chorus:<ref>{{cite book | chapter=Chapter IX | title=Snarleyyow; or, The Dog Fiend | last=Marryat | first=Frederick | authorlink=Frederick Marryat | year=1837 | chapter-url=https://hdl.handle.net/2027/hvd.hweec5?urlappend=%3Bseq=53%3Bownerid=27021597767822330-57 | publisher=E. L. Carey and A. Hart | hdl=2027/hvd.hweec5?urlappend=%3Bseq=53 | publication-place=Philadelphia }}</ref>

{{Poem quote|At Fidler's Green, where seamen true,
    When here they've done their duty,
The bowl of grog shall still renew,
    And pledge to love and beauty.}}

[[Herman Melville]] describes a Fiddler's Green as a sailors' term for the place on land "providentially set apart for dance-houses, doxies, and tapsters" in his posthumous novella ''[[Billy Budd, Sailor]]''.

In [[Patrick O'Brian]]'s novel ''[[Post Captain (novel)|Post Captain]]'' (1972), the character Jack Aubrey describes several seamen living together on land by saying, "We'll lay in beer and skittles – it will be Fiddler's Green!".

In [[Neil Gaiman]]'s ''[[The Sandman (Vertigo)|The Sandman]]'' comic book series, [[Fiddler's Green (character)|Fiddler's Green]] is a place located inside of [[The Dreaming (comics)|the Dreaming]], a place that sailors have dreamed of for centuries. Fiddler's Green is also personified as a character as well as a location in the fictional world, the former largely based upon casual associations of [[G. K. Chesterton]]. In the [[The Sandman (TV series)|2022 TV adaption of the books]], the personification is played by [[Stephen Fry]]. From November 12 to 14, 2004, a comic book convention promoted as "Fiddler's Green, A Sandman Convention" was held at the Millennium Hotel in [[Minneapolis]], [[Minnesota]]. Author Neil Gaiman and several ''Sandman'' series artists, and others involved in the series' publication, participated in the convention, with profits benefiting the [[Comic Book Legal Defense Fund]]. 

Fiddler's Green is an extrasolar colony mentioned in [[Robert A. Heinlein]]'s novels ''[[Friday (novel)|Friday]]'' (1982) and ''[[The Cat Who Walks Through Walls]]'' (1985).

===Title names===
''Fiddler's Green'' is the title of a 1950 novel by [[Ernest K. Gann]], about a fugitive criminal who works as a seaman after stowing away.<ref>{{cite book|title=Fiddler's Green|first=Ernest K.|last=Gann|publisher=William Sloane Association|year=1950}}</ref> The author [[Richard McKenna]] wrote a story, first published in 1967, titled "Fiddler's Green,” in which he considers the power of the mind to create a reality of its own choosing, especially when a number of people consent to it. The main characters in this story are also sailors, and have known of the legend of Fiddler's Green for many years.<ref>{{cite book|title=Casey Agonistes and Other Science Fiction and Fantasy Stories|first=Richard|last=McKenna|publisher=[[Pan Books]]|location=London|date=1976|isbn=978-0330248259}}</ref> It is also the title of the last book of [[Richard Woodman]]'s history of the [[British Merchant Navy]].<ref name="z451">{{cite book | last=Woodman | first=Richard | title=Fiddler's Green | publisher=History Press | date=2010 | isbn=978-0-7524-4822-0 | page=}}</ref>

==In music==
* A song called "Fiddler's Green", or more often "Fo'c'sle Song", was written by [[John Conolly (folk musician)|John Conolly]] in 1966,<ref>''When a Loose Cannon Flogs a Dead Horse There's the Devil to Pay: Seafaring Words in Everyday Speech'' by Olivia A. Isil</ref> a [[Lincolnshire]] songwriter. It has been recorded by [[Tim Hart]] and [[Maddy Prior]] for their album ''Folk Songs of Olde England Vol. 2'' (1968), by [[The Dubliners]] for their album ''[[Plain and Simple]]'' (1973), by [[The Yetties]] for their album ''All at Sea'' (1973), and by [[The Irish Rovers]] for their album ''Upon a Shamrock Shore: Songs of Ireland & the Irish'' (2000).<ref>{{cite web |title=The Irish Rovers – Upon A Shamrock Shore Songs Of Ireland And The Irish |url=https://www.discogs.com/The-Irish-Rovers--Upon-A-Shamrock-Shore-Songs-Of-Ireland-And-The-Irish/release/10143979 |website=Discogs |access-date=23 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200223031324/https://www.discogs.com/The-Irish-Rovers--Upon-A-Shamrock-Shore-Songs-Of-Ireland-And-The-Irish/release/10143979 |archive-date=23 February 2020 |language=en}}</ref> The American sailor band [[Schooner Fare]] credits the song for bringing together their band. The song is sung worldwide in nautical and traditional folk circles, and is often mistakenly thought to be a traditional song.<ref>{{cite book |editor1-first= Peter |editor1-last= Blood |editor2-first= Annie |editor2-last= Patterson |editor2-link= Annie Patterson |title= [[Rise Up Singing]] |year= 1988 |publisher= [[Sing Out!]]|location= Bethlehem, Pennsylvania |isbn= 1-881322-12-2 |page= 201 |quote= O Fiddler's Green is a place I've heard tell, where fishermen go if they don't go to hell}}</ref>
* "Fiddler's Green" is a song from the album ''[[Road Apples (album)|Road Apples]]'' by Canadian rock group [[The Tragically Hip]], written for lead singer [[Gord Downie]]'s young nephew Charles Gillespie, who died before the album was released.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/the-tragically-hip-10-essential-songs-w435104/fiddlers-green-1991-w435107|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|title=The Tragically Hip: 10 Essential Songs - "Fiddler's Green" (1991)|first=Natasha|last=Rudnick|date=August 19, 2016}}</ref> The track was covered by Welsh band Stereophonics on their 1999 Deluxe album ''[[Performance and Cocktails]]''
* "Fiddler's Green" is a song from [[Marley's Ghost (band)|Marley's Ghost]]'s album ''Four Spacious Guys'' (1996).
* ''Fiddler's Green'' is the title track and name of [[Tim O'Brien (musician)|Tim O'Brien]]'s [[Grammy Award]]-winning 2005 album.
* [[Fiddler's Green (band)|Fiddler's Green]] is a German folk-rock band, formed in 1990.
* "Fiddler on the Green" is a song by German-American power metal supergroup [[Demons & Wizards (band)|Demons & Wizards]], from their self-titled album released in 1999.
* Fiddler's Green is mentioned in the [[Archie Fisher]] song "The Final Trawl" from the album ''Windward Away'', about fishermen whose livelihoods are passing away.
* Fiddler's Green is also mentioned in the extended version of the song "[[Hoist the Colors]]" from the [[Pirates of the Caribbean (film series)|''Pirates of the Caribbean'' films]].
* [[Friends of Fiddler's Green]] is a folk music group form Canada, founded in 1971.
* Fiddler's Green is an outdoor amphitheatre in Greenwood Village, Colorado.
* "Fiddler's Green" was recorded by the American quintet [[Bounding Main]] and released on their 2005 album ''Maiden Voyage''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Fiddlers' Green |title=Bounding Main |url=https://boundingmain.com/music/cds/maiden-voyage/ |access-date=2024-02-29 |website=Bounding Main|date=September 28, 2019 }}</ref>

==In art==

* Statue by Ray Lonsdale, installed in 2017 on Fish Quay in [[North Shields]], England.<ref>{{cite web |author1=David Morton |title=The North Shields memorial to lost fishermen - how the striking statue was created |url=https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/history/gallery/north-shields-memorial-lost-fishermen-20432412 |website=Chronicle Live |publisher=Reach plc |access-date=22 September 2022 |date=21 April 2021}}</ref>

*In the fifth installment of the [[Monkey Island]] game series ([[Tales of Monkey Island]] by [[Telltale Games]], namely Chapter 5 - The Rise of the Pirate God) Guybrush Threepwood visits the pirate crossroads, which is quoted by character Galeb as being "The stopping point before Fiddler's Green."

==In film==
* In [[George A. Romero]]'s ''[[Land of the Dead]]'', the human holdout, surrounded by water, is a former luxury development called Fiddler's Green.

==In the United States military==
The Cavalrymen's Poem, also entitled "Fiddlers' Green" was published in the [[US Army]]'s ''Cavalry Journal'' in 1923 and became associated with the [[1st Cavalry Division (United States)|1st Cavalry Division]].<ref>{{cite journal|title=Fiddler's Green and other Cavalry Songs by JHS|journal= [[Armor (magazine)|Cavalry Journal]]|date=April 1923}}</ref>

<poem><blockquote>Halfway down the trail to Hell in a shady meadow green,
are the Souls of all dead troopers camped near a good old-time canteen,
and this eternal resting place is known as Fiddlers' Green.

Marching past, straight through to Hell, the Infantry are seen, 
accompanied by the Engineers, Artillery and Marine,
for none but the shades of Cavalrymen dismount at Fiddlers' Green.

Though some go curving down the trail to seek a warmer scene,
no trooper ever gets to Hell ere he's emptied his canteen 
and so rides back to drink again with friends at Fiddlers' Green.
 
And so when man and horse go down beneath a saber keen,
or in a roaring charge fierce melee you stop a bullet clean,
and the hostiles come to get your scalp,
just empty your canteen and put your pistol to your head
and go to Fiddlers' Green.</blockquote></poem>

The name has had other military uses. Many places associated with the [[US military]] have been named Fiddler's Green:<ref>{{citation |last=Axelrod |first=Alan |page=49 |title=Weird War: Curious Military Trivia |date=2013-03-05 |publisher=Union Square |isbn=978-1-4351-4485-9 |language=en}}</ref>

* The [[US Marine Corps]] operated [[Firebase Fiddler's Green]] in the [[Helmand River Valley]], in Helmand Province, Afghanistan.
* An artillery Fire Support Base in Military Region III in [[Vietnam]] in 1972, occupied principally by elements of 2nd Squadron, [[11th Armored Cavalry]]
* The [[US Navy]]'s enlisted men's club in [[Sasebo, Nagasaki|Sasebo, Japan]] from 1952 to 1976
* The cavalryman's poem about Fiddler's Green is the regimental poem of the US [[2nd Cavalry Regiment (United States)|2nd Cavalry Regiment]].
* The enlisted men's club at [[United States Naval Training Center Bainbridge]]
* An informal bar at the [[Fort Sill]] Officers' Open Mess
* The stable and pasture used by Parsons Mounted Cavalry, a cadet group at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas
* A bar at the Saber & Quill in [[Fort Knox, Kentucky]]
* The larger of the two bars at the Leader's Club at [[Fort Benning]], Georgia
* Building 2805 at [[Fort Cavazos]] Texas, the former officer's club
* A small enlisted club on the [[Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton]] in California
* The base pub at the Joint Forces Training Base in Los Alamitos, California
* Former dining facility used by 2nd Cavalry Regiment at Fort Polk, Louisiana
* An artillery-only pub for the 10th Marine Regiment, [[Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune]] in North Carolina
* A privately-owned restaurant in San Diego, California adjacent to [[Naval Base Point Loma]] and [[Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego]]<ref>{{Cite web |last=Curry |first=Judi |date=2019-07-29 |title=Restaurant Review: Fiddler's Green on Shelter Island in Point Loma |url=https://obrag.org/2019/07/restaurant-review-fiddlers-green-on-shelter-island-in-point-loma/ |access-date=2020-07-13 |website=[[OB Rag]] |language=en-US}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Cockaigne]]
* [[Blessed island|Blessed Island]]
* [[Friends of Fiddler's Green]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{Cite book |last1= Page |first1= Michael |first2= Robert |last2= Ingpen |title= Encyclopedia of Things that Never Were |publisher= [[Viking Press]] |year= 1985 |isbn= 0-670-81607-8 |url-access= registration |url= https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofth00page }}
* [http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-fid2.htm Fiddlers green – World Wide Words]

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