Flower of Scotland - wikipedia Flower of Scotland This article is about the song. For the national flower of Scotland, see thistle. This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( May 2011 ) Flower of Scotland Unofficial anthem of Scotland Lyrics Roy Williamson Music Roy Williamson `` Flower of Scotland '' ( Scots : Flouer o Scotland, Scottish Gaelic : Flùr na h - Alba ) is a Scottish song, used frequently at special occasions and sporting events. Although there is no official national anthem of Scotland, `` Flower of Scotland '' is one of a number of songs which fulfil this role, along with the older `` Scots Wha Hae '', and `` Scotland the Brave '', amongst others. Roy Williamson of the folk group the Corries wrote both the lyrics and music for the song. The words refer to the victory of the Scots, led by Robert the Bruce, over England 's Edward II at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314. Contents 1 Lyrics 2 Popular use 3 References 4 External links Lyrics The song was composed and is sung in English, typically with Scots pronunciation of a few words ( e.g. `` Tae '' as opposed to `` To '' ). English O Flower of Scotland, When will we see Your like again, That fought and died for, Your wee bit Hill and Glen, And stood against him ( against who ? ), Proud Edward 's Army, And sent him homeward, To think again. The Hills are bare now, And Autumn leaves lie thick and still, O'er land that is lost now, Which those so dearly held, That stood against him ( against who ? ), Proud Edward 's Army, And sent him homeward, To think again. Those days are past now, And in the past they must remain, But we can still rise now, And be the nation again, That stood against him ( against who ? ), Proud Edward 's Army, And sent him homeward, To think again. Scots O Flouer o Scotland, Whan will we see Yer like again, That focht an dee 'd for, Yer wee bit Hill an Glen, An stuid agin him ( agin ho ? ), Prood Edwart 's Airmie, An sent him hamewart, Tae think again. The Hills is bare nou, An Autumn leafs Lies thick an still, Ower land that is tint nou, That thae sae dearlie held, That stuid agin him ( agin ho ? ), Prood Edwart 's Airmie, An sent him hamewart, Tae think again. Thir days is past nou, An in the past Thay maun bide, But we can aye rise nou, An be the naition again, That stuid agin him ( agin ho ? ), Prood Edwart 's Airmie, An sent him hamewart, Tae think again. Scottish Gaelic O Fhlùir na h - Alba, cuin a chì sinn an seòrsa laoich a sheas gu bàs ' son am bileag feòir is fraoich, a sheas an aghaidh ( an aghaidh cò ? ) feachd uailleil Iomhair ' sa ruaig e dhachaidh air chaochladh smaoin ? Na cnuic tha lomnochd ' s tha duilleach Foghair mar bhrat air làr, am fearann caillte dan tug na seòid ud gràdh, a sheas an aghaidh ( an aghaidh cò ? ) feachd uailleil Iomhair ' sa ruaig e dhachaigh air chaochladh smaoin. Tha ' n eachdraidh dùinte ach air dìochuimhne chan fheum i bhith, is faodaidh sinn èirigh gu bhith nar Rìoghachd a-rìs a sheas an aghaidh ( an aghaidh cò ? ) feachd uailleil Iomhair ' sa ruaig e dhachaidh air chaochladh smaoin. Popular Use The song has been used as a National Anthem by the Scotland national rugby union team, ever since the winger, Billy Steele, encouraged his team - mates to sing it on the victorious Lions tour of South Africa in 1974. The song was adopted as the pre-game anthem during the deciding match of the 1990 Five Nations Championship between Scotland and England, which Scotland won 13 -- 7 to win the Grand Slam. The Scottish Football Association adopted `` Flower of Scotland '' as its pre-game national anthem in 1997 although it was first used by them in 1993. Usually only the first and third verses are sung. At any home International Scotland Rugby union test match the first verse is accompanied by bagpipes followed by the third verse unaccompanied by any instrument. When sung at sporting events, crowds will often call back after certain lines : after the words `` and stood against him '', `` England '' or `` Gainst who ? '' may be heard. The song was sung at boxer Jim Watt 's fights. The song was used as the victory anthem of Team Scotland at the Commonwealth Games in 2010 replacing `` Scotland the Brave ''. This trend continued to the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow where it was again Team Scotland 's anthem and was sung following a Scottish first place. ( notably it was sung 4 times when Team Scotland won 4 gold medals in the opening day ). This usage continued at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. The tune was originally composed on the Northumbrian smallpipes, which play in D and have the benefit of keys on the chanter to achieve a greater range of notes. Ewan McGregor performed the song in Magadan in Russia in 2004 for the filming of the TV show Long Way Round. In July 2006, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra conducted an online poll ( publicised by Reporting Scotland ) in which voters could choose a national anthem from one of five candidates. 10,000 people took part in the poll in which Flower of Scotland came out the winner. The results were as follows : Tune Votes ( % ) Flower of Scotland 41 % Scotland the Brave 29 % Highland Cathedral 16 % Is There for Honest Poverty 8 % Scots Wha Hae 6 % Scottish pirate metal band Alestorm have performed a cover of it live and recorded it, which is on their album Captain Morgan 's Revenge. In addition, the Canadian Scottish - influenced Celtic Punk band The Real McKenzies have included the song on the album `` Loch 'd & Loaded '' as well a staple in their live performance among many other traditional Scottish ballads. At the 2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, the song was sung at Edinburgh Castle by 53 Scottish children selected from schools across Scotland. References Jump up ^ `` Action call over national anthem ''. BBC News. BBC. 21 March 2006. Retrieved 30 November 2011. Jump up ^ `` Scots anthem call rejected ''. BBC News. BBC. 29 October 2003. Retrieved 30 November 2011. Jump up ^ The Corries website Archived 29 August 2010 at the Wayback Machine. -- ( visited 28 August 2007 ) Jump up ^ SONGS OF THE SIX NATIONS Archived 16 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine. Jump up ^ `` The Perfect Rugby Anthem -- Flower of Scotland ! '' WalesOnline, 7 February 2009 ( visited 26 May 2011 ) Jump up ^ `` BBC Sport Academy -- The Flower of Scotland ''. BBC Sports. Retrieved 16 December 2009. Jump up ^ `` Why SFA president wants to scrap Flower of Scotland ' dirge ' ''. The Herald ( Scotland ). 3 June 2007. Jump up ^ `` Match vs Liechtenstein ''. Dailymotion. Jump up ^ `` Flower Of Scotland At Hampden Park ''. www.youtube.com. Jump up ^ `` Glasgow 2014 : Scotland open Games by winning four golds ''. Jump up ^ `` Flower of Scotland is first choice in RSNO anthem poll ''. heraldscotland. 2006 - 07 - 03. Retrieved 5 February 2011. Jump up ^ `` London 2012 : Scottish choir sings for opening ceremony ''. BBC. Retrieved 12 December 2012. External links Flower of Scotland -- The website `` Cantaria '' has a page dedicated to the song, featuring the lyrics and an MP3 file of the song sung by Wild Mountain Thyme. The Flower of Scotland -- The website `` Modern History Sourcebook '' also has a page on the song, featuring midi files. The Flower of Scotland -- Translation of lyrics into Scots Gaelic. Page with eight National Anthem candidate songs, with lyrics and comments National anthems of Europe Sovereign states Albania Andorra Armenia Austria Azerbaijan Belarus Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Croatia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Finland France Georgia Germany Greece Hungary Iceland Ireland Italy Kazakhstan Latvia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macedonia Malta Moldova Monaco Montenegro Netherlands Norway Poland Portugal Romania Russia San Marino Serbia Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey Ukraine United Kingdom Vatican City Territories, dependencies, other areas United Kingdom Constituent countries England Northern Ireland Scotland Wales British Overseas Territories Gibraltar Crown dependencies Guernsey Isle of Man Jersey Counties Cornwall Lincolnshire Yorkshire Russia Adygea Arkhangelsk Oblast Bashkortostan Chechen Republic Chuvashia Dagestan Ingushetia Kabardino - Balkaria Kalmykia Karachay -- Cherkessia Republic of Karelia Khanty -- Mansi Autonomous Okrug Komi Republic Mari El Mordovia Moscow City Nenets Autonomous Okrug North Ossetia - Alania Rostov Oblast Tatarstan Tambov Oblast Udmurtia Yamalo - Nenets Autonomous Okrug Spain Andalusia Aragon Asturias Basque Country Cantabria Catalonia Galicia Majorca Occitania Valencia Disputed Abkhazia Artsakh Kosovo Donetsk People 's Republic ( Donetsk ) Luhansk People 's Republic ( Luhansk ) Northern Cyprus South Ossetia Transnistria Crimea Other Flanders ( Belgium ) Wallonia ( Belgium ) Republika Srpska ( Bosnia and Herzegovina ) Istria ( Croatia ) Faroe Islands ( Denmark ) Greenland ( Denmark ) Åland ( Finland ) Alsace ( France ) Brittany ( France ) Provence - Alpes - Côte d'Azur ( France ) Corsica ( France ) Occitania ( France / Italy / Spain / Monaco ) Bavaria ( Germany ) Lusatia ( Germany ) Pomerania ( Germany / Poland ) Macedonia ( Greece ) Aosta Valley ( Italy ) Marche ( Italy ) Sardinia ( Italy ) Sicily ( Italy ) Friesland ( Netherlands ) Azores ( Portugal ) Madeira ( Portugal ) Székely Land ( Romania ) Sami ( Norway / Sweden / Finland ) Rîbnița ( Transnistria / Moldova ) Gagauzia ( Moldova ) Former states and territories German Democratic Republic ( East Germany ) Soviet Union / Russian SFSR ( 1944 -- 91 ) Russian Federation ( Russia ) ( 1991 -- 2000 ) Ukrainian SSR ( Ukraine ) ( 1949 -- 92 ) Byelorussian SSR ( Byelorussia ) ( 1944 -- 91 ) Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( 1919 -- 41 ) SFR Yugoslavia ( 1977 -- 91 ) FR Yugoslavia ( 1992 -- 2003 ) Serbia and Montenegro ( 2003 -- 06 ) Second Spanish Republic ( 1931 -- 39 ) Donetsk People 's Republic ( 2014 -- 2015 ) Other entities European Union Sovereign Military Order of Malta Scotland national rugby union team Scottish Rugby Union History Records Players All Players Killed in World War I Killed in World War II Home stadiums Murrayfield Stadium Competitions and trophies Rugby World Cup Six Nations Championship Triple Crown Grand Slam Auld Alliance Trophy Calcutta Cup Centenary Quaich Hopetoun Cup Douglas Horn Trophy Related teams Sevens Scotland A Scotland B Scotland Club XV U21s U20s U19s U18s U17s U16s Matches By opponent Argentina Australia England Barbarians Fiji France Ireland Italy New Zealand Romania Samoa South Africa Wales See also England ( 1871 ) Tours Australia 1982 1998 2012 2017 New Zealand 1981 2000 South Africa 1999 2003 2006 2014 Argentina 1969 2008 2014 2018 Zimbabwe 1995 Oceania 1998 2012 2017 North America 1985 2002 2014 2018 Japan 2016 See also Flower of Scotland Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Flower_of_Scotland&oldid=861400967 '' Categories : Scottish patriotic songs National symbols of Scotland Scotland national rugby union team Scotland national football team songs Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links Use British English from May 2011 Use dmy dates from May 2011 Articles needing additional references from May 2011 All articles needing additional references Articles containing Scots - language text Articles containing Scottish Gaelic - language text All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from April 2018 Articles with unsourced statements from October 2008 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Aragonés Asturianu Azərbaycanca Català Čeština Cymraeg Dansk Deutsch Ελληνικά Español Euskara Français Gaeilge Gàidhlig Galego 한국어 Հայերեն Hrvatski Italiano עברית Latviešu Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Norsk nynorsk Polski Português Русский Scots Simple English Slovenščina Suomi Svenska Türkçe Українська Tiếng Việt 中文 28 more Edit links This page was last edited on 27 September 2018, at 04 : 14 ( UTC ). 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Question: who wrote the words to flower of scotland
Answer: Roy Williamson