Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau The Welsh poet Dylan Thomas is often quoted as saying "The land of my fathers. My fathers can have it!" in reference to Wales. However, this is misleading, as it was a villainous character in one of Thomas' short stories that spoke this line. Gwynfor Evans named his history of Wales "Land of my fathers: 2,000 years of Welsh history". It was a translation of the Welsh original, "Aros Mae". The £1 coins minted in 1985, 1990, 1995 and 2000 with a Welsh emblem on the reverse, also bear the edge inscription ("I am devoted to my country"), from the
Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau ("Eos Morlais"), one of the leading Welsh soloists of his day. It was increasingly sung at patriotic gatherings and gradually it developed into a national anthem. "Hen wlad fy nhadau" was also one of the first Welsh-language songs recorded when Madge Breese sang it on 11 March 1899, for the Gramophone Company, as part of the first recording in the Welsh language. In 1905, "Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau" became the first national anthem to be sung at the start of a sporting event. Although crowds singing anthems during matches was commonplace, there was no precedent for the anthem to be