The Banks O' Doon


"The Banks O' Doon" is a Scots song written by Robert Burns in 1791, sometimes known as "Ye Banks and Braes". Burns set the lyrics to an air called The Caledonian Hunt's Delight. Its melodic schema was also used for Phule Phule Dhole Dhole, a song by Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore.
The song was inspired by the story of Margaret Kennedy, who was seduced then abandoned by Andrew McDouall, son of a wealthy family and sometime Member of Parliament for Wigtonshire. Kennedy sued for a declarator of marriage, but died prior to adjudication of the case. Although the Consistorial court found the marriage claim valid, the Court of Session decided the marriage claim failed, but found McDouall to be the father of Kennedy's daughter and ordered that he pay £3,000 to Kennedy's estate and provide for the child.

Lyrics

Burns wrote three versions of the song, all published in 1791.
First VersionSecond VersionThird Version

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