Biography
Born on 11 November 1919 in Blairgowrie, Perthshire, Scotland, and passing away on 8 March 2002 in Scotland, Hamish Henderson earned recognition as a poet and folklorist who became known as the father of the Scottish folk revival. His mother’s performances of songs in Scots, French, and Gaelic planted the seeds for his enduring fascination with traditional music. While serving in the Intelligence Corps throughout World War II, he encountered troops from both Axis and Allied forces and recorded numerous melodies and lyrics that reached his ears.
He began work on the poetry volume Elegies For The Dead In Cyrenaica while stationed in Tunisia in 1943 and finished the manuscript in Scotland four years later; the book received the Somerset Maugham Award in 1949, after which he used the funds for a journey to Italy. Following the war, Alan Lomax reached out to him, and Henderson joined the American collector on a field-recording expedition across Scotland in 1951. He secured the Scottish material Lomax had gathered for the recently established School Of Scottish Studies and, in 1953, brought Jeannie Robertson to wider attention. His composition “The Freedom Come-All-Ye” later acquired the status of an unofficial national anthem.
In 1955 Henderson took up a post as representative for the School Of Scottish Studies and maintained a regular presence at festivals. A committed socialist throughout his life, he declined an OBE during the 1980s.
He began work on the poetry volume Elegies For The Dead In Cyrenaica while stationed in Tunisia in 1943 and finished the manuscript in Scotland four years later; the book received the Somerset Maugham Award in 1949, after which he used the funds for a journey to Italy. Following the war, Alan Lomax reached out to him, and Henderson joined the American collector on a field-recording expedition across Scotland in 1951. He secured the Scottish material Lomax had gathered for the recently established School Of Scottish Studies and, in 1953, brought Jeannie Robertson to wider attention. His composition “The Freedom Come-All-Ye” later acquired the status of an unofficial national anthem.
In 1955 Henderson took up a post as representative for the School Of Scottish Studies and maintained a regular presence at festivals. A committed socialist throughout his life, he declined an OBE during the 1980s.