Volume III, song 263, page 272 - 'Awa whigs awa' - Scanned...
Volume III, song 263, page 272 - 'Awa whigs awa' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)
Verse 1: 'Awa whigs awa, Awa whigs awa, Ye're but a pack o' traitor louns, Ye'll do nae gude at a'. Our thrissles flourish'd fresh and fair, And bonie bloom'd our roses; But whigs cam like a frost in June, And wither'd a' our posies.' Chorus: 'Awa whigs awa, Awa whigs awa, Ye're but a pack o' traitor louns, Ye'll do nae gude at a'.' A 'loun' is a rascal and a 'thrissel' is a thistle. The use of 'Whigs' here refers to opposers of the Jacobite cause.
The 'Scots Musical Museum' is the most important of the numerous eighteenth- and nineteenth-century collections of Scottish song. When the engraver James Johnson started work on the second volume of his collection in 1787, he enlisted Robert Burns as contributor and editor. Burns enthusiastically collected songs from various sources, often expanding or revising them, whilst including much of his own work. The resulting combination of innovation and antiquarianism gives the work a feel of living tradition.
The late seventeenth century term 'Whig' was first used as an abusive term to describe those who opposed the religious reforms of King Charles II. It possibly stems from 'whiggamore', the nickname given to Scottish Covenanters, who opposed King Charles I's outlawing of presbyterianism. After 1679, Whig was the name given to those who were who opposed to the succession of James II, a staunch catholic. Soon after, it entered political life to describe those who were opposed to the Jacobite cause. The political term Whig soon became synonymous with those who advocated parliamentary power over the crown, also known as liberals or radicals, as opposed to the Torys who believed in the supreme power of the crown.
Volume III, song 263, page 272 - 'Awa whigs awa' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)