Canadian Patriotic Song - “The Maple Leaf Forever”

“The Maple Leaf Forever” is a Canadian patriotic song written by Alexander Muir in 1867, the year of Canada’s Confederation. He wrote the work after serving with the Queen’s Own Rifles of Toronto in the Battle of Ridgeway against the Fenians in 1866.

The Canadian vocal harmony trio Finest Kind (Ian Robb, Ann Downey and Shelley Posen) recorded “The Maple Leaf Forever” on their 2003 CD “Silks & Spices”. This version, with new words co-written by Posen and Robb and harmony arrangement by the trio, was sung at the ceremonial planting in Ottawa of two silver maple seedlings: direct descendants of the tree which is thought to have inspired Alexander Muir to write the original song in 1867. The ceremony occurred on November 2, 2014, and was attended by several local dignitaries and military veterans. The words acknowledge the Aboriginal, French, English and “new Canadian" contributions to the evolution of Canada, and highlight Canada’s more recent military role as peacekeepers “where hate and war divide”. The second verse also references John McCrae’s iconic First World War poem “In Flanders Fields”.