"Cold Iron" is a poem written by Rudyard Kipling published as the introduction to Rewards and Fairies in 1910. Not to be confused with Kipling's 1909 Cold Iron (The Tale) published in the same book.
In 1983, Leslie Fish set the poem to music and recorded it as the title track on her fifth cassette-tape album. In 1996, the song was nominated for a Pegasus Award for "Best Spiritual Song" by a ballot of science fiction and fantasy fans, conducted by the committee of the annual Ohio Valley Filk Fest (OVFF), a filk music convention.
"Cold Iron" begins with Baron realizing that war (cold iron) is the gift or metal of man. The second stanza implies that the Baron believes force is how one gets what they want. The third stanza implies the foolishness of the Baron. The Baron rebels against the King, but is captured. However, the King shows him mercy. In stanza seven, the reader sees that the King is actually Christ. The eighth stanza talks about Christianity and the forgiveness Christ gives to His followers.
Peter Bellamy sang it on his first album of songs set to Kipling's poems: Oak, Ash and Thorn. He stated that the text of the song isn't derived from the tale of Cold Iron but they share a common theme of the iron's influence over men and the People of the Hills.
William H. Stoddard observed that "Cold Iron" means ordinary iron that the Roman Legion used to crucify criminals, he also commented how the iron was interpreted differently as a magical substance.
The poem was set to music by Leslie Fish,who besides her political activism, is well known for setting many poems of Kipling to music.
Balladino rock band song based on Cold Iron poem on Youtube