WE ARE no longer to be crushed as rebels. The government is considering rewriting the national anthem on the grounds that the historical third verse, which refers to the Jacobite rebellion of 1745, is not "inclusive".
The words, which refer to Scots as seditious, rebellious characters who should be crushed by British forces with the assistance of God Almighty was described as "not actually that inclusive" by Lord Goldsmith, the former attorney general. He is leadi
ng a citizenship review, ordered by the Prime Minister, Gordon Brown - a Scot, though not a seditious one.
The Labour peer, who is responsible for discovering ways to bind the United Kingdom together and promote Britishness through a new "statement of values", said he had encountered a number of people who argued that the lyrics, written in 1745 by an unknown author, should be polished in the interests of political correctness.
He said: "There's some problem with part of it, absolutely. Part of it is not that inclusive. Some people have suggested we might think about whether there are different words that might be put in place which would be more inclusive."
God Save The King (or Queen) was first sung in 1745 at two London theatres, the Theatres Royal at Drury Lane and Covent Garden, to rally public spirits after the Jacobite rebellion, led by Charles Edward Stuart, defeated King George II's troops at the Battle of Prestonpans.
The commander-in-chief of Britain's forces was Marshal George Wade, who was born in Ireland but had served the king in "North Britain". The controversial third chorus goes: "Lord grant that Marshal Wade/ May by thy mighty aid/ Victory bring/ May he sedition hush/ And like a torrent rush/ Rebellious Scots to crush/ God save the King."
Unfortunately, the Lord did not grant any such favour to Marshal Wade, who was sacked after he failed to counter the Jacobite's march into England and was replaced by Prince William Augustus, the Duke of Cumberland, who went on to win the decisive Battle of Culloden in 1746.
This particular verse was abandoned soon after and long before the song was accepted as the British national anthem in the 1780s and 1790s, where it has remained by tradition alone as it has never been formally adopted by a royal proclamation or an act of parliament.
Last night, Professor Ted Cowan of Glasgow University's history department, said: "I don't know of any other national anthem that celebrates the defeat of one constituent part of the nation. But I think this wretched song has been with us too long to get rid off."
But Andrew Roberts, the author of A History of the English Speaking Peoples since 1900 said: "I'm a pretty patriotic bloke and I think I've sung the national anthem more than anyone else my age - 45 - and I have never once sang the third verse. It ... has not been sung since the 18th century. We shouldn't change it, we should just ignore it as we have done for so long."
BUILDING BRIDGES
FIELD Marshal George Wade (1673-1748) may have been hailed as the man to crush "rebellious Scots" but shortly after the lyrics were written, he was sacked and his job handed to the Duke of Cumberland.
Wade, who was born in County Westmeath in Ireland, joined the British Army in 1690 and rose to high rank.
In 1724, he was sent to inspect Scotland and recommended the construction of barracks, bridges and roads in order that the nation be properly controlled.
As Commander-in-Chief of His Majesty's Forces, Castles, Forts and Barracks in North Britain, he was responsible for the design and construction of 250 miles of roads and 40 new bridges including the Tay Bridge at Aberfeldy.
