The "Freedom Come-All-Ye" ( gd, Thig Saorsa Uile) is a

Scots language Scots ( endonym: ''Scots''; gd, Albais, ) is an Anglic language variety in the West Germanic language family, spoken in Scotland and parts of Ulster in the north of Ireland (where the local dialect is known as Ulster Scots). Most commonl ...

song written by

Hamish Henderson Hamish Scott Henderson (11 November 1919 – 9 March 2002) was a Scottish poet, songwriter, communist, intellectual and soldier. He was a catalyst for the folk revival in Scotland. He was also an accomplished folk song collector and dis ...

in 1960.

History

An early two-stanza version of the song was published in a broadsheet "Writers against Aparthied" (sic) in the Spring of 1960; as the first line refers to Harold Macmillan's Wind of Change speech, given in February of that year, the composition can be dated quite precisely. Henderson was recorded singing the complete 3-stanza version of the song that year. The song's tune is an adaptation of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

pipe march "The Bloody Fields of Flanders", composed by John McLellan DCM (Dunoon), which Henderson first heard played on the

Anzio Anzio (, also , ) is a town and ''comune'' on the coast of the Lazio region of Italy, about south of Rome. Well known for its seaside harbour setting, it is a fishing port and a departure point for ferries and hydroplanes to the Pontine Islands ...

beachhead. He wrote the lyrics after discussions with Ken Goldstein, an American researcher at the

School of Scottish Studies The School of Scottish Studies ( gd, Sgoil Eòlais na h-Alba, sco, Scuil o Scots Studies) was founded in 1951 at the University of Edinburgh. It holds an archive of approximately 33,000 field recordings of traditional music, song and other lo ...

, who had enjoyed Henderson's rendition of the tune. It was subsequently adopted by Glasgow Peace Marcher

CND The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) is an organisation that advocates unilateral nuclear disarmament by the United Kingdom, international nuclear disarmament and tighter international arms regulation through agreements such as the Nucle ...

demonstrators and the anti- Polaris campaign (for example, notably at the anti-Polaris protests at Holy Loch in 1961). A product of the Scottish

folk revival The American folk music revival began during the 1940s and peaked in popularity in the mid-1960s. Its roots went earlier, and performers like Josh White, Burl Ives, Woody Guthrie, Lead Belly, Big Bill Broonzy, Billie Holiday, Richard Dyer-Benn ...

, and originally a 1960s

protest song A protest song is a song that is associated with a movement for social change and hence part of the broader category of ''topical'' songs (or songs connected to current events). It may be folk, classical, or commercial in genre. Among social mov ...

, it is still popular in Scotland and overseas, especially as an anthem of Scottish Socialists. Henderson described the song as "expressing my hopes for Scotland, and for the survival of humanity on this beleaguered planet.". It has been suggested as choice for a Scottish

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...

(although there is no official Scottish anthem), though Henderson felt that part of its strength lies in the fact that it is an alternative, "International Anthem". A version of the song was performed by South African soprano

Pumeza Matshikiza Pumeza Matshikiza (born 27 February 1979) is a South-African operatic soprano. A graduate of the Royal College of Music and a member of the Royal Opera's Jette Parker Young Artists Programme from 2007 to 2009, she made her début as a flower ma ...

at the opening ceremony of the 2014 Commonwealth Games.

References

External links

Song_sung_by_Robyn_Stapleton
.html" ;"title="Robyn Stapleton">Song sung by Robyn Stapleton
">Robyn Stapleton">Song sung by Robyn Stapleton
{{Authority control European anthems Scottish songs Scottish patriotic songs Anti-war songs Works by Hamish Henderson