"I Vow to Thee, My Country" (Holst) at Westminster Abbey & York Minster

0:01 Westminster Abbey organ
1:19 York Minster organ
Performed by Charles Burks in July, 1998 during a family vacation to England.
"I Vow to Thee, My Country" was set to music by Gustav Holst, who adapted the music of "Jupiter" from his Planets Suite to fit the poetry in 1925. He named his tune "Thaxted", and it was later set to the hymn "O God Beyond All Praising".
The text to "I Vow to Thee, My Country" is from a poem by British diplomat Sir Cecil Spring Rice, written in 1912. The poem described how a Christian owes his loyalties to both his homeland and the heavenly kingdom.
I vow to thee, my country, all earthly things above,
Entire and whole and perfect, the service of my love;
The love that asks no questions, the love that stands the test,
That lays upon the altar the dearest and the best;
The love that never falters, the love that pays the price,
The love that makes undaunted the final sacrifice.
And there's another country, I've heard of long ago,
Most dear to them that love her, most great to them that know;
We may not count her armies, we may not see her King;
Her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering;
And soul by soul and silently her shining bounds increase,
And her ways are ways of gentleness, and all her paths are peace

[@davidheath3835]

Lump in throat time absolutely God Save The King God Bless Great Britain our precious Jerusalem 🇬🇧🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🇬🇧

[@assuredaviation9116]

I was not born in the UK, however my family background runs right through the UK. I feel proud of my heritage, I feel proud to share the same blood as an Englishmen. I'm proud of the UK. Long live His Majesty the King! Long Live The Empire!

[@paulmaudsley2219]

0:57 Same here. I swore the Oath of Allegiance to QEII in April 1982 one of my proudest moments and spent 36 yrs as a policeman.

[@tmitch1950]

Every time I hear this hymn, my eyes are filled with tears and my emotions run rampant.

[@MrBizmarky]

So true.

[@nigelarbury9989]

Same

[@DannyEastVillage]

me too. And I'm a Yank.

[@willmears1111]

Totally emotional. I can't stop singing along. Love of Country.

[@tonybarde2572]

I’m just going to say it. RIP The Queen

[@im3phirebird81]

Nah man, this song when created was a free piece of music made for your own imaginations, but because these pompous and self-inflated assholes have to attribute everything great and glorious to themselves to feed their illusion that they walk like gods among men doesn't make it right. I would never degrade a masterpiece like this to the worship of a bunch of corrupted souls.

[@lucyhernandez2163]

Even A Capella, is AMAZING HYMN, doesn't matter the instrument you play it, it wil sound FANTASTIC, GREAT LYRICS. IT HAS MAGIC!!!

[@bornagainbach2731]

Thanks for listening, glad it was a blessing!

[@simontodd619]

I have goose bumps just listening to this, thank you.

[@Cascade2808]

When you realize that probably the last time this organ was recorded playing this hymm was at Princess Diana's funeral a year ago in the first video.

[@2timothy477]

Amen! All Glory to God, our Lord Jesus Christ! Steven.

[@bornagainbach2731]

Yes, so thankful He saves us by grace through faith!

[@jacoboVE_Cultura]

A spectacular piece, and a magnificent performance on this splendid organ. Congratulations 👏👍

[@bornagainbach2731]

@JacoboVE - Thank you, it was a thrill to play in those spaces.

[@westernaustralia9442]

Simply beautiful! My favourite...thankyou

[@MarthalieThurstonSachemPiper]

Organist and instrument complement each other as a tapestry. Well done. Thank you for your ministry of music 🎶

[@bornagainbach2731]

Thanks for your comment - so glad it was a blessing!

[@MarthalieThurstonSachemPiper]

​@bornagainbach2731 The tempo at both instruments was perfection .

[@lindaross783]

Jupiter by Holst... Gorgeous

[@gregbushman319]

Stunning!

[@mushypeas468]

Thank you that was beautiful

[@fabia_man]

Absolutely fantastic.

[@marga7028]

And do you know, do you realize dear english, what you are throwing away, bit by bit by bit by bit. Stand up, stand up, STAND UP!!!!!!!!!!!

[@lindaross783]

From The Planets. Doesn't take away from the beauty

[@user-dy2km5mv5t]

Needs to be the UK national anthem

[@sifridbassoon]

You Brits have all the best hymns. It makes me quite jealous

[@geordiegeorge9041]

This is Jupiter from Holst, not I vow to thee my country. If the words are not sung how can it be a song?

[@bornagainbach2731]

Holst was asked to compose a hymn for the text "I vow to thee my country", so he made an arrangement of his composition "Jupiter" that fit the words. Hope that helps.

[@sandrastroomer4988]

this IS I vow to the my country. i was singing along to it

[@geordiegeorge9041]

@@sandrastroomer4988 The music by itself is Jupiter from Holst: The Planets, Op.32 - 4 fast forward to 3 min, and you will understand. ://kzbin.info/www/bejne/a4iQoGiPlKyopLc

[@garymoore2535]

It is whatever the listener processes it as, by which I mean whenever I hear it, the words of "I vow to the my country" run through my mind as a reflex whether the words are present or not. I would have loved to be present whilst "I vow to the my country" (Instrumental version) was being played on that organ. The sheer power of a church organ to make the very walls reverberate......nothing quite like it ! 😊

[@charlesburks2175]

@@garymoore2535 Thank you, it was quite an experience for a 19 year old American!

[@geordiegeorge9041]

I vow to the my country was a poem written by Sir Cecil Spring Rice in betwwen 1908-12. The music originated as a wordless melody, which Holst later named "Thaxted", taken from the "Jupiter" movement of Holst's 1917 suite The Planets. So the music alone is not "I vow to the my country". You try to stay awake, and do a little research before making such comments

[@johnjanland4788]

I think that the organist should have been more dressed JML

[@bornagainbach2731]

Actually, nobody was there but me and my family.