Md. Code Ann., Gen. Prov. § 7-318
Redline — January 1, 2019 → current.View current text →
Current — January 1, 2026
As of January 1, 2019
(a) The poem “Maryland! My Maryland!”, written by James Ryder Randall in 1861 and set to the tune of “Lauriger Horatius”, is the State song.
(b) The words of the State song are:
IThe despot’s heel is on thy shore,Maryland!His torch is at thy temple door,Maryland!Avenge the patriotic goreThat flecked the streets of Baltimore,And be the battle queen of yore,Maryland! My Maryland!
IIHark to an exiled son’s appeal,Maryland!My mother State! to thee I kneel,Maryland!For life and death, for woe and weal,Thy peerless chivalry reveal,And gird thy beauteous limbs with steel,Maryland! My Maryland!
IIIThou wilt not cower in the dust,Maryland!Thy beaming sword shall never rust,Maryland!Remember Carroll’s sacred trust,Remember Howard’s warlike thrust,––And all thy slumberers with the just,Maryland! My Maryland!
IVCome! ‘tis the red dawn of the day,Maryland!Come with thy panoplied array,Maryland!With Ringgold’s spirit for the fray,With Watson’s blood at Monterey,With fearless Lowe and dashing May,Maryland! My Maryland!
VCome! for thy shield is bright and strong,Maryland!Come! for thy dalliance does thee wrong,Maryland!Come to thine own heroic throng,Stalking with Liberty along,And chaunt thy dauntless slogan song,Maryland! My Maryland!
VIDear Mother! burst the tyrant’s chain,Maryland!Virginia should not call in vain,Maryland!She meets her sisters on the plain––“Sic semper!” ‘tis the proud refrainThat baffles minions back again,Maryland! My Maryland!
VIII see the blush upon thy cheek,Maryland!For thou wast ever bravely meek,Maryland!But lo! there surges forth a shriekFrom hill to hill, from creek to creek––Potomac calls to Chesapeake,Maryland! My Maryland!
VIIIThou wilt not yield the vandal toll,Maryland!Thou wilt not crook to his control,Maryland!Better the fire upon thee roll,Better the blade, the shot, the bowl,Than crucifixion of the soul,Maryland! My Maryland!
IXI hear the distant thunder–hum,Maryland!The Old Line’s bugle, fife, and drum,Maryland!She is not dead, nor deaf, nor dumb––Huzza! she spurns the Northern scum!She breathes! she burns! she’ll come! she’ll come!Maryland! My Maryland!
(a) The Governor may designate a citizen of the State as its Poet Laureate.
(b) (1) The Poet Laureate:
(i) may not receive compensation as Poet Laureate; but
(ii) subject to paragraph (2) of this subsection, is entitled to reimbursement for any expenses incurred in the performance of duties as Poet Laureate.
(2) Reimbursement under this subsection:
(i) shall be paid from the General Emergency Fund of the Board of Public Works; and
(ii) may not exceed $1,000 in any 1 fiscal year.
Official source: Maryland General Assembly. Reproduced from public-domain Maryland statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.