31 August 1688 John Bunyan, the Puritan preacher and author most famous for his popular allegory The Pilgrim's Progress, died on August 31, 1688.

TO BE A PILGRIM    aka   He Who Would Valiant Be   is an English Christian hymn using words of John Bunyan in The Pilgrim's Progress. It first appeared in Part 2 of The Pilgrim's Progress, written in 1684. The words were modified extensively by Percy Dearmer for the 1906 The English Hymnal.

At the same time it was given a new tune by British composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, who used a melody taken from the traditional song "Our Captain Cried All Hands" which he collected [from Mrs Verrall] in the hamlet of Monk's Gate [near Horsham in West Sussex] – hence the name of "Monks Gate" by which the melody is referred to in hymn books. Wikipedia

I can never forget singing this at school;
Hobgoblin nor foul fiend can daunt his spirit;
He knows he at the end shall life inherit.
Then fancies fly away; he'll fear not what men say;
He'll labour night and day to be a pilgrim.

Our Captain Cried All Hands

---

Many recordings of “He Who Would Valiant Be” on YouTube    https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=He+who+would+Valiant+Be

Mainly Norfolk: Our Captain Cried All Hands / Fountains Flowing    https://mainlynorfolk.info/martin.carthy/songs/ourcaptaincriedallhands.html