As poet laureate and patriot, Alfred, Lord Tennyson was very influential in 19th century England. He managed to demonstrate the ignorance of the English army leadership while reflecting his strong nationalist views in an attempt to create propaganda for the Crimean War in his poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade". The charge is a tragic incident that took place in 1854 during the Crimean War, between England, France and Sardinia against Russia, when English army generals made a mistake and sent more of six hundred soldiers for a charge destined for disaster. The soldiers were known as the Light Brigade and the charge resulted in the deaths of over two hundred soldiers and over three hundred horse deaths. In these horrific aftermath, Tennyson responded to this event by writing a poem that became a classic. Tennyson was a staunch nationalist and very political. He was moved and disturbed when he heard the news of this tragic accusation. The poem became a form of propaganda for the Crimean War as Tennyson glorified the sacrifice of the soldiers using his exceptional writing skills. Although this poem is considered propaganda by many, he included the word error in the poem which showed the ignorance of the army leaders. To begin with, Tennyson was a strong nationalist poet and he was well educated in politics. He expressed his opinions and preferences regarding political issues. For example, he was not in favor of despotic rule and Marjorie Reeves explains that "As a student he [Tennyson] was strongly political and his sympathies were with European nationalist movements against despotic rule" (152 ). In 1850, Tennyson was appointed Poet Laureate of England and reflected very patriotic views in...... middle of article...... Propaganda and mass persuasion: a historical encyclopedia from 1500 to the present. ABC-CLIO. 2003. Google Books. Web. April 12, 2011. Jones, Philip Dwight. "Balaklava, battle of." Student of the world of books. 2011 ed. Internet. March 30, 2011. Bloom, Harold. The main poets of Bloom, Alfred Lord Tennyson. Broomall, PA: Chelsea House, 1999. P.11. print.Marshall, Carol. “The Charge of the Light Brigade.” Poetry out loud. School Library Journal, 2005: 59. Elibrary.Web. March 31, 2011. Pearce Joseph. Literary giants, literary Catholics. Ignatious Press, 2005. Google Books. Internet. April 9, 2011. Southam, Brian. British Writers. Alfred Tennyson (1809-1892). Print. Blunden, Edmund and Heinemann, Eds. “Tennyson.” Selected poems. London: Heinemann Educational Books, 1960. p.1. printed.Southam, British Columbia “Tennyson.” Writers and their works: NO 218. London: Longman Group, 1971. p.6. print.