Scotland’s National Anthem: ‘Flower of Scotland’ Lyrics in Full, Explained

Adopted in 1997, ‘Flower of Scotland’ is the country’s unofficial national anthem.

Scotland will play at the 2026 World Cup. | Craig Williamson/Getty Images

The Scotland national soccer team has had an array of musical accompaniment over the years.

Opposing fans are often left puzzled when the Tartan Army channels the Von Trapp family with a spirited rendition of “Do-Re-Mi,” while Del Amitri didn’t exactly inspire the 1998 World Cup squad with “Don’t Come Home Too Soon,” a tune more maudlin than motivational.

Yet the song most synonymous with the team is the hymn belted out before every international: “Flower of Scotland.”

Technically, “God Save the King” is the national anthem of the United Kingdom—including its northernmost nation. However, Scotland’s sporting teams have long rejected it because of its association with England, instead favoring the song written by Roy Williamson of The Corries at 69 Northumberland Street in Edinburgh in the 1960s.

Here’s everything you need to know about “Flower of Scotland,” the unofficial official national anthem.

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“Flower of Scotland” Full Lyrics

O Flower of Scotland,
When will we see
Your likes again,
That fought and died for,
Your wee bit Hill and Glen,
And stood against them,
Proud Edward's Army,
And sent them homeward,
Tae 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 them,
Proud Edward’s Army,
And sent them homeward,
Tae think again.

Those days are past now,
And in the past
they must remain,
But we can still rise now,
And be a nation again,
That stood against them,
Proud Edward’s Army,
And sent them homeward,
Tae think again.

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Flower of Scotland Lyrics Explained

“Flower of Scotland” is about the Battle of Bannockburn. | Culture Club/Getty Images

“Flower of Scotland,” first performed by Scotland’s national soccer team in 1993 and fully adopted in 1997, centers on the Battle of Bannockburn, fought in June 1314 during the First War of Scottish Independence.

The song repeatedly references “Proud Edward’s Army,” the English force led by King Edward II, believed to have been the largest ever to invade Scotland, with around 25,000 men. Despite commanding only about 6,000 soldiers, Robert the Bruce defeated Edward, defending “your wee bit hill and glen”—a nod to Scotland’s rugged landscape. As the lyrics declare, the Scots “sent them homeward.”

However, the song later laments that “the hills are bare now” and the “land that is lost now,” suggesting that while Scotland won the battle, the broader struggle for lasting independence remained unresolved.

There is a Gaelic version of the song, but before matches it is usually sung in English, aside from the Scots word “tae” (to).

Former Scottish Conservative deputy leader Murdo Fraser has labeled the lyrics “jingoistic,” and critics have taken issue with what they describe as the “vindictive” tone of the chorus. However, Ronnie Browne of The Corries, who first performed the song in 1967, argued that fans want a “combative sentiment” before heading into battle on the field.

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