Welcome, Royal Charlie (I)

DESCRIPTION: "The man that should our king hae been, He wore the royal red and green." He defeats the Hanoverians at Falkirk and Prestonpans. Since he has left a German rules and we "daurna brew a peck o' maut." Whelps sit on his throne. Charlie! drive them away.
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1821 (Hogg-JacobiteRelicsOfScotlandVol2)
KEYWORDS: nonballad political Jacobites
FOUND IN: Britain(Scotland)
REFERENCES (2 citations):
Hogg-JacobiteRelicsOfScotlandVol2 71, "Welcome, Royal Charlie" (2 texts, 2 tunes)
Greig/Duncan1 136, "Welcome Royal Charlie" (1 text, 1 tune)
Roud #5817
NOTES [227 words]: The last verse includes the lines "Though every dog maun hae its day, The right belongs to Charlie." Is this the source for the "every dog will have its day" restatement of Hamlet V.i.273-274?
Hogg-JacobiteRelicsOfScotlandVol2: "There are many editions of this song, which is popular all over the country, both south and north."
For references to Falkirk and Prestonpans see "Tranent Muir" and "The Muir of Culloden." - BS
Many versions of this say something like, "Oh, you've been lang a-coming." This was a great complaint of the Jacobites: James the Old Pretender had briefly made an appearance in 1715 after the Fifteen had pretty well fizzled out, but no member of the Stuart family had appeared in Britain again until Bonnie Prince Charlie showed up in 1745. By then it was almost too late; the Jacobite cause was fading. Not that the Stuarts had much choice; James was more a liability than a help to his cause due to his extreme pessimism, and Charles could hardly lead the rebellion as an infant. Besides, the French and Jacobites needed the War of the Austrian Succession to distract the British government. All in all, it was a tricky situation for the Jacobites. But it did cost them -- George II, while no prize, was certainly more attractive than his father George I, and by 1745, most of those who had opposed the accession of George I were dead. - RBW
Last updated in version 2.5
File: GrD1136

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