Flowers of the Forest facts for kids

Flowers of the Forest is a famous Scottish folk tune. It remembers a sad event in Scottish history: the defeat of the Scottish army at the Battle of Flodden in September 1513. The original words for this tune are not known. However, the melody was written down around 1615–1625. It was called "Flowres of the Forrest" in an old book called the John Skene of Halyards Manuscript. The tune might even be older than that.

Many different sets of words have been added to this tune over the years. The most well-known lyrics were written by Jean Elliot in 1756 or 1758. Another version was written by Alison Cockburn. Today, many people play this tune on the Great Highland bagpipe. Because of its sad meaning and how much people respect it, pipers often play "Flowers of the Forest" only at funerals or memorial services. They usually don't play it in public at other times, except for private practice or teaching.

The Melody of "Flowers of the Forest"

The tune of "Flowers of the Forest" is quite simple. It uses a special kind of musical scale called a pentatonic scale. This means it mostly uses five notes. This is common for old Scottish tunes. However, there are a couple of notes in the second part of the melody that are different. They are flattened, which adds to the tune's unique sound.

Jean Elliot's Famous Lyrics

Jean Elliot (born in 1727) wrote her lyrics for the tune around 1756. Her words turned the tune into a lament. A lament is a song that expresses deep sadness. Her song mourns the deaths of King James IV and many of his nobles. It also remembers over 10,000 Scottish men who died at the Battle of Flodden in northern England in 1513. These men are called the "Flowers of the Forest" in the song. This battle was a very important event in the history of Scotland.

Jean Elliot first published her song without her name on it. People thought it was a very old song that had survived for centuries. But later, famous writers like Robert Burns and Walter Scott found out that Jean Elliot was the real author.

The song is written in Scots, which is a language spoken in Scotland. It is also known as The Floo'ers o' the Forest (are a' wede away). The lyrics describe the deep sadness of women and children who lost their young men in the battle. The song reminds some people of an old Welsh poem called Y Gododdin, which is also about a big defeat.

Powerful solo versions of this song are played on bagpipes at remembrance services and funerals. Many people in the Commonwealth countries know this tune simply as "The Lament." It is often played on Remembrance Day to honor soldiers who died in wars.

Here are some lines from Jean Elliot's song:

I've heard the lilting, at the yowe-milking,

Lassies a-lilting before dawn o' day;

But now they are moaning on ilka green loaning;

"The Flowers of the Forest are a' wede away".

...

Dool and wae for the order sent oor lads tae the Border!

The English for ance, by guile wan the day,

The Flooers o' the Forest, that fought aye the foremost,

The pride o' oor land lie cauld in the clay.

The song is mentioned in an old book called The Scots Musical Museum. It shows that the tune itself survived for a long time. Jean Elliot's words, published around 1755, became the most common version.

Alison Cockburn's Lyrics

In 1765, a clever and social woman named Alison Cockburn published her own lyrics for "Flowers of the Forest." Her song begins with "I've seen the smiling of Fortune beguiling." It is believed she wrote these words before she got married in 1731.

Her version of the song talks about a financial problem that caused many rich landowners in Selkirk to lose their money. Later, people thought she might have written it when a man named John Aikman, whom she liked, moved to London.

Here is the first part of Alison Cockburn's song:

I've seen the smiling
Of fortune beguiling,
I've tasted her pleasures
And felt her decay;
Sweet is her blessing,
And kind her caressing,
But now they are fled
And fled far away.

How the Song is Used Today

Both versions of "Flowers of the Forest" are part of the traditional music played at the Selkirk Common Riding. This event partly remembers the sad loss at the Battle of Flodden. Jean Elliot's version is known in Selkirk as "The Liltin." It is played after a special ceremony called the Casting of the Colours. Alison Cockburn's version is played as a march by the town band. It is also the version that is sung more often in Selkirk, where it is known as "The Flo'ers o' the Forest."

The tune was played at the funeral of Queen Victoria in 1901. This helped make it very popular. In 1942, The Duke of Windsor asked for it to be played at the funeral of his brother, Prince George, the Duke of Kent. The Duke of Kent had died in a plane crash. It was said to be his favorite song.

The song is mentioned a lot in the novel Sunset Song by Lewis Grassic Gibbon. It also appears in the 2015 movie based on the book. The main character, Chris Guthrie, even sings a part of it. The song is also quoted at the beginning and end of the historical novel The Flowers of the Forest by Elizabeth Byrd, which ends with the Battle of Flodden.

"Flowers of the Forest" is the official lament of the Canadian Forces. This means it is played to honor soldiers who have died.

Many musicians have covered or referenced the song:

• The English folk-rock band Fairport Convention included the song on their 1970 album Full House.
• A lone piper played the tune at the funeral of singer-songwriter Sandy Denny.
• Scottish singer Kenneth McKellar recorded a version of the song.
• Scots/Australian singer-songwriter Eric Bogle mentions "Flowers of the Forest" in his song "No Man's Land." In this song, he wonders if "Flowers of the Forest" and "Last Post" were played at a World War I soldier's burial.
• English folk singer June Tabor recorded Bogle's song followed by an instrumental version of "Flowers of the Forest" on her 1977 album Ashes and Diamonds.
• A part of Jean Elliot's lyrics was used in John McGrath's play Border Warfare (1989).
• Australian singer-songwriter Graham Dodsworth recorded a version with Irish/Australian singer Claire Peters on his 1998 album In Good King Arthur's Day.
• Michael Nyman used a faster, re-edited version of the song in the music for the movie The Piano.
• English musician Mike Oldfield covered the song on his 1996 album, Voyager.
• The English folk band The Unthanks has a song called 'Flowers of the Town'. It is based on "Flowers of the Forest" but talks about the loss of young men in the First World War. The words are very similar to a poem by Cecil Day-Lewis.
• In 2007, Scottish singer Isla St Clair sang Flowers of the Forest at Tyne Cot Cemetery in Flanders, Belgium. This was to remember the 90th anniversary of the Battle of Passchendaele in the First World War. Queen Elizabeth II and Queen Paola were there, along with other leaders. She also recorded the song in 1998 and 2011.
• The British and Canadian military often use this tune to mark the death of a soldier during official memorial services, for example, for those who died in Afghanistan.
• The Australian War Memorial plays the song during its Last Post ceremony.

The Forest District

The "Forest" mentioned in the song's title was a large area in Scotland. It included Selkirkshire (also known as Ettrick Forest), parts of Peeblesshire, and parts of Clydesdale. This area was famous for its archers. The archers from Ettrick Forest were called the "Flowers of the Forest" after the Battle of Falkirk in 1298. They were the personal bodyguards of King James IV at the Battle of Flodden. Their bodies were found surrounding their dead king after the battle.