History of your national anthem

Originally posted by Nick1986 I can't stand my own country's anthem. It's tune is really boring and the lyrics glorify an unelected German tyrant

The same for me! Romanian anthem has some lugubrious, church tune (it was made by Anton Pann, a composer of religious music).

And the lyrics are pretty dumb, they start with "Wake up, Romanian, from the sleep of death" which assume Romanians are some kind of corpse.

I can't stand my own country's anthem. It's tune is really boring and the lyrics glorify an unelected German tyrant

The history of the German national anthem is an ironic one. Composed by a nationalist and a republican, Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben, in 1841, it represented everything that was officially frowned upon in contemporary Germany, as the author himself composed the song in exile (on Heligoland, at the time a British possession). The country was not unified -- just the German Confederation -- and its governments were very far from being republics. Originally called Das Lied der Deutschen (or Das Deutschlandlied, "Song of the Germans/of Germany"), the common title is just from the first line of the song. It originally meant, therefore, the unity of Germany over all its existing divisions, not the triumph of Germany over everyone else. The music was taken from the String Quartet in C major (the Kaiser-Quartet), Op. 76,3 of Joseph Haydn, composed in 1797. Although a unified Germany was later brought about by Prussia, Deutschland über Alles nevertheless was never the national anthem of the German Empire, perhaps because its anti-monarchist origins were well remembered. At the same time, that explains better why the song was adopted as the anthem by the Weimar Republic in March, 1922. Like German nationalism itself, the meaning of the song was then transformed by darker forces. Hitler certainly did want Germany to be "over all" other nations and to dominate the world. But again, Deutschland über Alles was not the favorite song of the Nazis -- that was the Horst Wessel Song. In post-war Germany, the old meaning for the first verse was completely ruined, but the third can still be used as appropriate to the modern stat

Germany, Germany above all
Above everything in the world
When, always, for protection and defense
Brothers stand together.
From the Maas to the Memel
From the Etsch to the Belt,
Germany, Germany above all
Above all in the world.

German women, German fidelity,
German wine and German song,
Shall retain, throughout the world,
Their old respected fame,
To inspire us to noble deeds
For the length of our lives.
German Women, German fidelity,
German wine and German song.

Unity and justice and freedom
For the German Fatherland;
Let us all strive to this goal
Brotherly, with heart and hand.
Unity and justice and freedom
Are the pledge of fortune grand.
Prosper in this fortune's glory,
Prosper German fatherland.

You better cool it. I'm getting the feeling your not going to last long here if you keep acting like a nationalist. If you would have cared to read the thread, you'd know cattus wasn't a snake after all since he was defending the anthem and using sarcasim.

the anthem of people's republic of china has a short history, to be honest i think the state's flag and anthem are lame, no history, no tradition, just some communist bullshit imported from soviet russia

Chilean natural anthem is focussed in nature, and also in the very chovinistic myth that we live in a paradyse. Chilean anthem is quite long, but we just song a part of it.

Edited by pinguin - 11-May-2008 at 06:50

yes, America`s national anthem is a song in which the people relish bombing the crap out of countries while they hold their hands over their hearts ....

 The rockets red glare and bombs bursting in air refers to the Flag standing against the bombing of U.S. Fort McHenry by the British. Francis Scott Key who was detained by them on ship 8 miles out was moved by this.

I think American national anthem is poetic and lovely  Its actions are not....however

As stated on the government of Canada web site.

"O Canada" was proclaimed Canada's national anthem on July 1, 1980, 100 years after it was first sung on June 24, 1880. The music was composed by Calixa Lavall�e, a well-known composer; French lyrics to accompany the music were written by Sir Adolphe-Basile Routhier. The song gained steadily in popularity. Many English versions have appeared over the years. The version on which the official English lyrics are based was written in 1908 by Mr. Justice Robert Stanley Weir. The official English version includes changes recommended in 1968 by a Special Joint Committee of the Senate and House of Commons. The French lyrics remain unaltered.

My favorite anthems are:

La Marseilles

Star Spangled Banner

Soviet Anthem