A
constituent
nation of
the
Other
popular
"national
songs" of
However,
another
"national
song" was
used at the
opening of
the Scottish
Parliament
in 1997, one
which
usually
isn't
presented as
an
unofficial
national
anthem, the
Robert Burns
poem "A
Man's A Man
for A'
That", set
to a
traditional
melody. The
choice of
this song
may have
been to duck
the
controversy
of choosing
one of the
previously
mentioned
"national
songs" as an
official
regional
anthem, or
by using
"God Save
the Queen"
(the anthem
of the
It is used as the Scottish national anthem at the Commonwealth Games. It is also the authorized pipe band march of The British Columbia Dragoons of the Canadian Forces and is played during the Pass in Review at Friday parades at The Citadel. In 2006, it was adopted as the regimental quick march of the Royal Regiment of Scotland.
The piping tune dates back several centuries, and is considered a traditional Scottish folk-tune. However the lyrics were written comparatively recently by the Scottish journalist Cliff Hanley in or around the 1950s. Clifford Leonard Clark Hanley (28 October 1922 – 9 August 1999) was a journalist, novelist, playwright and broadcaster from Glasgow in Scotland. Originally from Shettleston in the city's East End, he was educated at Eastbank Academy.