Here's one, two, three jolly lads all in one mind
We are come a pace egging and I hope you'll prove kind
And I hope you'll prove kind with your eggs and strong beer
For we'll come no more nigh you until the next year
And the first to come in is Lord Nelson you'll see
With a bunch of blue ribbons tied round by his knee
And a star on his breast that like silver doth shine
And I hope he remembers it's pace egging time
Here's one, two, three jolly lads...
And the next to come in, it is Lord Collingwood
And he fought with Lord Nelson till he shed his blood
And he's come from the sea, Old England to view
And he's come a pace-egging with all of his crew
Here's one, two, three jolly lads...
And the last to come in is old Toss Pot you'll see
He's a valiant old man and in every degree
He's a valiant old man and he wears a pig tail
And his only delight is a-drinking mulled ale
Here's one, two, three jolly lads...
Come ladies and gentlemen, sit by the fire
Put your hands in your pockets and give us our desire
Put your hands in your pockets and treat us all right
If you give nowt we'll take nowt, farewell and goodnight
Here's one, two, three jolly lads all in one mind
We are come a pace egging and I hope you'll prove kind
And I hope you'll prove kind with your eggs and strong beer
For we'll come no more nigh you until the next year
Guitar chords for Pace Egging Song
C Here's one, two, three jolly lads all in one mind G7 F We are come a pace egging and I hope you’ll prove kind C F G7 C And I hope you'll prove kind with your eggs and strong beer F G7 C For we'll come no more nigh you un-til the next year
In his paper on English Ritual Songs, Mike Ballantyne writes:
Easter is a Lunar festival that occurs on the first Sunday following the full moon of the vernal equinox. It can, therefore, fall anywhere between March 22 and April 25. In Teutonic myth, the Easter hare – the sacred and sacrificial animal of Astra or Eostre – the Teutonic goddess of dawn and the Spring – laid the eggs which in our times she is only said to deliver. In the term “pace egg,” “pace” is, ultimately, derived from the Hebrew word for Passover. This has now evolved, through Greek and Latin, into asso- ciation with the Resurrection. As the Celtic festival was also concerned with rebirth (albeit a rebirth in nature), it is relatively easy to see how convenient it was for the Roman church to adopt existing, pre-Christian festivals.
There are three main customs that still exist relating specifically to pace-egging. These are the singing of songs from door to door (which might properly be called Easter carolling or wassailling), egg rolling, and the staging of Pace-Egging plays. The majority of these customs are held in the northern half of England.