When the fair land of Poland, Thaddeus's aria from The Bohemian Girl

When the fair land of Poland was ploughed by the hoof
Of the ruthless invader, when Might,
With steel to the bosom, and flame to the roof,
Completed her triumph o'er Right,
In that moment of danger, when Freedom invoked
All the fetterless sons of her pride,
In a phalanx as dauntless as Freedom e'er yoked,
I fought and I bled by her side.

My birth is noble, unstained my crest
As is thine own: let this attest!

Pity for one in childhood torn
From kindred with whom she dwelt,
Ripened in after-years to love,
The fondest that heart hath felt,
Has made me, thus far, faith renew
With outlaws chance first linked me to.
As a foe, on this head let your hatred be piled,
But despise not one who hath so loved your child.