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H.M.S. Pinafore
Following the limited commercial success
of Thespis (the music for which
has mostly been
lost), Trial by
Jury (a one-act work with
no spoken dialogue, which was conceived as
a "curtain-raiser" for longer works)
and The Sorcerer, H.M.S.
Pinafore - first performed in 1878 - was the
first major "hit" of the Gilbert
and Sullivan repertoire, on both sides of the
Atlantic.
The scene is the deck of Her Majesty's Ship, "Pinafore", anchored in the harbour at Portsmouth.
The First Lord of the Admiralty, Sir Joseph
Porter KCB, is coming aboard to meet Josephine,
the daughter of Captain Corcoran, with a view
to marriage. But Josephine is in love with Ralph
Rackstraw, a humble seaman. The dilemma is resolved
when it is discovered that Corcoran and Rackstraw
were switched at birth, so that Rackstraw is
really the Captain and vice versa. Sir
Joseph Porter, unwilling to contract marriage
with a humble seaman's daughter, steps aside
in favour of Captain Rackstraw.
Gilbert's plot was intended, in part, to
satirize the then First Lord of the Admiralty -
W.H. Smith - a politician who knew little about
naval matters, and had made his fortune from
the chain of bookstores which still bear his
name. The satire was so effective that W.H.
was given the nickname "Pinafore Smith"
by his political opponents. In the song which
follows, Sir Joseph Porter outlines his career
as an articled clerk, solicitor and politician,
admonishing his listeners with the proposition
that, if you "Stick close to your desks and never go to sea
/ ... you all may
be rulers of the Queen's Navee".
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When I was a lad
I served a term as office boy to an attorney's
firm.
Sir Joseph Porter, KCB:
When I was a lad I served a term
As office boy to an Attorney's firm.
I
cleaned the windows and I swept the floor,
And I polished up the handle of
the big front door.
Chorus:
He polished up the handle of the big front
door.
Sir Joseph Porter, KCB:
I polished up that handle so carefullee
That now I am the Ruler
of the Queen's Navee!
Chorus:
He polished up that handle so carefullee,
That
now he is the ruler of the Queen's Navee.
Sir Joseph Porter, KCB:
As office boy I made such a mark
That they gave me the post of a junior
clerk.
I served the writs with a smile so bland,
And I copied all the
letters in a big round hand--
Chorus:
He copied all the letters in a big round
hand.
Sir Joseph Porter, KCB:
I copied all the letters in a hand so free,
That now I am the
Ruler of the Queen's Navee!
Chorus:
He copied all the letters in a hand so
free,
That now he is the Ruler of the Queen's Navee!
Sir Joseph Porter, KCB:
In serving writs I made such a name
That an articled clerk I soon
became;
I wore clean collars and a brand-new suit
For the pass examination
at the Institute,
Chorus:
For the pass examination at the Institute.
Sir Joseph Porter, KCB:
And
that pass examination did so well for me,
That now I am the Ruler of the
Queen's Navee!
Chorus:
That pass examination did so well for he,
That now he is
the Ruler of the Queen's Navee!
Sir Joseph Porter, KCB:
Of legal knowledge I acquired such a grip
That they took me into the
partnership.
And that junior partnership, I ween,
Was the only ship that I
ever had seen.
Chorus:
Was the only ship that he ever had seen.
Sir Joseph Porter, KCB:
But that
kind of ship so suited me,
That now I am the Ruler of the Queen's
Navee!
Chorus:
But that kind of ship so suited he,
That now he is the ruler of
the Queen's Navee!
Sir Joseph Porter, KCB:
I grew so rich that I was sent
By a pocket borough into Parliament.
I
always voted at my party's call,
And I never thought of thinking for myself
at all.
Chorus:
He never thought of thinking for himself at all.
Sir Joseph Porter, KCB:
I thought
so little, they rewarded me
By making me the Ruler of the Queen's
Navee!
Chorus:
He thought so little, they rewarded he
By making him the Ruler
of the Queen's Navee!
Sir Joseph Porter, KCB:
Now landsmen all, whoever you may be,
If you want to rise to the top of the
tree,
If your soul isn't fettered to an office stool,
Be careful to be
guided by this golden rule
Chorus:
Be careful to be guided by this golden
rule.
Sir Joseph Porter, KCB:
Stick close to your desks and never go to sea,
And you all may
be rulers of the Queen's Navee!
Chorus:
Stick close to your desks and never go to
sea,
And you all may be rulers of the Queen's Navee!
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