"Twas on a Holy Thursday their innocent faces clean The children walking two & two in red & blue & green..." Holy Thursday is a short poem by William Blake that was originally published in 1789 within Songs on Innocence (1789), a work that was later combined with Songs of Innocence and of Experience (1794). This was due to Blake writing Songs of Innocence as a contrary to the Songs of Experience. A different version of the poem also named "Holy Thursday" appears in both Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience. William Blake (1757-1827) was an English poet, painter and printmaker. Largely unrecognized during his lifetime, Blake's work is today considered seminal and significant in the history of both poetry and the visual arts.