Men of Harlech

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"Men of Harlech" or "The March of the Men of Harlech" (in Welsh: Rhyfelgyrch Gwŷr Harlech) is a song and military march which is traditionally said to describe events during the seven year long siege of Harlech Castle between 1461 and 1468.^[1] Commanded by Constable Dafydd ap Ieuan, the garrison held out in what is the longest known siege in the history of the British Isles.^[2] “Through Seven Years” is an alternate name for the song.^[3] Now some associate the song with the earlier shorter siege of Harlech Castle around 1408, which pitted the forces of Owain Glyndŵr against the future Henry V of England."^{[citation needed]}

"Men of Harlech" is sometimes mistaken for the national anthem of Wales. This is incorrect; the Welsh anthem is "Hen Wlad fy Nhadau" ("Land of my Fathers"). Still, the song occupies an important place in Welsh national culture. It is the regimental march of several regiments historically associated with Wales. The Royal Regiment of Wales, now the Royal Welsh (UK), the Royal Canadian Hussars (Montreal) and the Governor General's Horse Guards, Canadian Forces are three examples. It is also the regimental march for two Australian Army Reserve units, the 8th/7th Battalion of The Royal Victoria Regiment and Sydney University Regiment where it is played as a quick march.^[4]

The music was first published in 1794 as March of the Men of Harlech in the second edition of The Musical and Poetical Relicks of the Welsh Bards. It first appeared with lyrics in Gems of Welsh Melody, edited by the Welsh poet, John Owen (Owain Alaw), published in London, England and Wrexham, Wales in 1860. The Welsh lyrics are by the Welsh poet John Jones (Talhaiarn), and the English lyrics by W.H. Baker. Since then, many different versions of the English lyrics have appeared.

The song gained international recognition when it was featured prominently in the 1964 film Zulu, although the version of lyrics sung in it were written especially for the film. It was also featured in a 1950 Western, Apache Drums, at the conclusion of the 1945 film The Corn Is Green, starring Bette Davis, and at the conclusion of the 1995 film The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain starring Hugh Grant.

It was also used as part of the startup music for ITV station Teledu Cymru in the early 1960s and until April 2006^[5] in Fritz Spiegl's BBC Radio 4 UK Theme. The song features in an S4C television series Codi Canu, as an attempt is made to bring traditional four-part harmony choral singing back to the Welsh rugby terraces.^[6]

A Monty Python sketch, "Interesting People," had the "Rachel Toomey Bicycle Bell Choir" performing a bicycle-bell arrangement of "Men of Harleich;" all its members were dressed in rain slickers and stood astride bicycles.

The tune is used for the alma mater song of Georgetown University, Hartwick College, and of Pine-Richland school district in Pennsylvania. It is also the theme song to Cumberland High School, Sydney, Australia, Sydney Girls High School, Sydney, Australia, Sydney Technical High School, Bexley, Australia, St. Joseph's College, Gregory Terrace, Brisbane, Australia, Tantasqua Regional High School and Hoosac Valley High School in Massachusetts, USA, Woodrow Wilson High School in Washington, D.C., USA, King's College, Hong Kong and The Mackay School in Viña del Mar, Chile.

An instrumental orchestration of the song was often used as a score for NFL Films during the 1960s and 1970s.

Adapted versions are sung by the fans of Celtic Crusaders Rugby League Club, Cardiff City F.C. and Wrexham F.C.

It is also used as the tune of a spoof song The Woad Ode.

The music is used in the Sky One adaptation of Terry Pratchett's Hogfather, whilst the Unseen University Wizards are trying to cure the hangover of Bilious — the Oh God of Hangovers.

Will be played by President Barack Obama's high school, Punahou, marching band as "Men of Punahou", in inaugural parade, 20 Jan 2009^{[citation needed]}.

Lyrics

There are numerous versions of "Men of Harlech". Those below are the most common English versions. See also The Woad Ode.

John Oxenford version

"Talhaiarn" version

Zulu movie version

(The above is sung almost twice in the film (the British open fire on the charging Zulus before the start of the final couplet), in counterpoint to the Zulu war chants and the sounds of their shields. Film editor John Jympson cut the scene to the song so that on either side of cuts where the British soldiers cannot be heard, the song is in the correct relative position.)

John Guard version

Notes

1. ^ The Oxford Companion to British History - Oxford University Press (1997) page 454; Dictionary of Ancient & Medieval Warfare by Matthew Bennett (2001)
2. ^ Bert S. Hall, Weapons and Warfare in Renaissance Europe by (The Johns Hopkins University Press,2001) - page 212.
3. ^ Winnie Czulinski, Drone On!: The High History of Celtic Music (Sound And Vision, 2004) page 107.
4. ^ Army Standing Orders, Ceremonial Manual, http://www.army.gov.au/ASOD/index.htm, Chapter 27, Annex A, http://www.army.gov.au/ASOD/documents/CEREV1/27A.pdf
5. ^ Radio 4 - the UK theme
6. ^ Gwŷr Harlech - The 2007 Rehearsal Room, on the Codi Canu pages of S4C's website.

Sources

• Volkslieder, German & Other Folk Songs Homepage Men of Harlech

External links

• Free typeset sheet music — various arrangements from Cantorion.org
• Men of Harlech — various versions of lyrics
• Royal Regiment of Wales' Band singing "Men of Harlech" (2.68MiB MP3) — recording, using John Guard lyrics, in the church at Rorke's Drift, South Africa on the 120th anniversary of the Battle of Rorke's Drift.