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Hazel
Song History
Bod
A simple brief
thought on Scottish
Independance.

Were the outdated
union not of some very
high value to England and
the English, why would
they fight so to try to
keep it?

There are only so many
slices to a pie, for one to
have more, another must
have less.

Lastly - to those Scottish
"Loyalists" - to whom are
you loyal?
Scots royalty died in the
1700's so it can be no
Scots crown - And
certainly not it appears to
those who came before,
that bled for Scotland
and her freedom !  
In the words
of Burns, as he
wrote from the heart.

Scots, wha hae wi' Wallace bled,
Scots, wham Bruce has aften led,
Welcome to your gory bed,
Or to victorie.

Now's the day, and now's the hour;
See the front o' battle lour;
See approach proud Edward's power,
Chains and slaverie.

Wha would be a traitor-knave?
Wha can fill a coward's grave?
Wha sae base as be a Slave?
Let him turn and flie:

Wha for Scotland's king and law,
Freedom's sword will strongly draw,
Free-man stand, or free-man fa',
Let him follow me.

By Oppression's woes and pains!
By your Sons in servile chains!
We will drain our dearest veins,
But they shall be free!

Lay the proud Usurpers low!
Tyrants fall in every foe!
Liberty's in every blow!
Let us Do - or Die!!!

Choose your destiny.
The song is about the unrequited
love of a captain of Irish dragoons for a beautiful
Scottish girl in Fyvie. The narration is in the third
person, through the voice of one of the captain's
soldiers. The captain promises the girl material comfort
and happiness, but the girl refuses the captain's
advances saying she would not marry a foreigner or a
soldier. The captain subsequently leaves Fyvie. In two
different variations of the song, he threatens to burn the
town(s) if his offer is rejected, or alternately save the
town if his offer is accepted. He later dies of a broken
heart, or battle wounds, or probably both.

Several variations on this theme exist. The soldier also
proposes marriage in some versions. Some versions
have the girl declare her love for the soldier, but only to
be stopped short by a reluctant mother.

Of interest is what might have given the Irishman the
idea that he had the right to burn Fyvie, and to discover
that a look into the English army of the times is needed.

The British Army
William III had raised troops in Ireland in the late 17th
century. Most of the Irish Regiments were raised in the
mid-1680's.

The 6th Horse became the 5th Horse in 1690 this in 1746
became the 1st Irish Horse and in Feb 1788 became the
4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards.
The 6th Inniskilling Dragoon Guards were raised in 1689
to fight for King William III. The Regiment left Ireland in
1708 and did not return for 100 years fighting in the 1715
rebellion in Scotland were in Flanders and fought at
Fontenoy in 1745, later at Waterloo in 1815 and
Balaclava in the Crimea in 1854.

The 8th Royal Irish Hussars was raised in 1693 as
dragoons later called 8th Dragoons or King's Royal Irish
Light Dragoons. In 1823 they became 8th Royal Irish
Hussars.

The 18th Foot (Royal Irish Regiment) was raised in 1683
and fought against King James II


it can be clearly seen that the Irish mercenaries were
employed by the English crown to suppress any
upwelling of Scottish independent thought that may
have happened. Interestingly as recently as the 1960's
Harold Wilson, British prime minister is reported to have
been prepared to place English troops on the streets of
Scotland to the same effect while ALL Scottish troops
were confined to barracks - and in 2008 Gordon Brown,
Britain's unelected premier went on record as stating he
"would do anything required to maintain the union" or
English domination of Scotland.