I Vow To Thee My Country is a British patriotic hymn and was written by Cecil Spring-Rice in 1918 after World War I. The melody of I vow to thee my country is also known as the slow middle section of “Jupiter” from The Planets Suite by English composer Gustav Holst. The music of Jupiter was added to the poem in 1920. Jupiter, completed in 1914 is just one of the seven “planets” featured in Holst’s The Planets Suite. Pluto, the eighth planet was added following Gustav Holst’s death as he was not interested in composing it. It wasn’t until 2000 that Pluto was written and performed and subsequently added to The Planets Suite. Although Holst didn’t consider it his best work, The Planets Suite was his most popular contribution to classical music.

I vow to thee my country/Jupiter has also been used many times in film and television music. The Proms Concert in the United Kingdom has featured The Planets Suite and has been used frequently in pop music (Charlotte Church), and marching bands in many countries. Not surprisingly, I vow to thee my country was used as the basis for “The World in Union”, the official anthem of the 2003 Rugby World Cup.

This piece was also played by Jo Brand on the BBC's 2007 program Play It Again
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