| English: 'Hail to Thee in Victor's Crown' | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Postcardc. 1900 | |
Former national anthem ofthe German Empire Former royal anthem of Prussia | |
| Lyrics | Heinrich Harries, 1790 |
| Music | "God Save the King" |
| Adopted | 1795 (byPrussia) 1871 (byGermany) |
| Relinquished | 1918 |
| Succeeded by | "Das Lied der Deutschen" |
| Audio sample | |
Old vocal recording inA major | |
"Heil dir im Siegerkranz" (German:[ˈhaɪldiːɐɪmˈziːɡɐˌkʁant͡s];lit. 'Hail to Thee in Victor's Crown') was the imperial anthem of theGerman Empire from 1871 to 1918, and previously the royal anthem ofPrussia from 1795 to 1918.[1]
Before thefoundation of the Empire in 1871, it had been the royal anthem ofPrussia since 1795 and remained as the royal anthem after 1871.[2] The melody of the hymn derived from theBritish anthem "God Save the King". For these reasons, the song failed to become popular within all of Germany. Not only did it fail to win the support of most German nationalists, but it also was never recognized by the southern German states, such asBavaria orWürttemberg.[3] At the near end ofWorld War I, the German Empirewas overthrown and "Das Lied der Deutschen" was adopted as the national anthem of its successor, theWeimar Republic.[4]
It is often considered the official national anthem of the German Empire.[5][6] However the German Empire never had an official anthem like the Weimar Republic or the Federal Republic of Germany (Lied der Deutschen). Together with "Die Wacht am Rhein" both songs had the status of unofficial national anthems.
Heinrich Harries wrote the lyrics in 1790 in honour of KingChristian VII of Denmark, and the line "Heil, Kaiser, dir" originally read "Heil, Christian, dir". In 1793, Harries' text was adapted byBalthasar Gerhard Schumacher [Wikidata] (1755–1805) for use inPrussia. Schumacher shortened Harries' text and replaced the wordChristian withKönig (king). After the proclamation of the German Empire, the wordKönig was replaced byKaiser (emperor).[7]
| German original | IPA transcription | English translation |
|---|---|---|
Heil dir im Siegerkranz, | [haɪl diːɐ ˀɪm ˈziː.ɡɐ.ˌkʁant͡s |] | Hail to thee in victor's wreath, |
Kaiser Wilhelm in the lyrics originally referred toWilliam I who reigned until 1888. His son,Frederick III, who reignedfor only 99 days, was succeeded byWilhelm II. One of the jokes at the time was that the song's title is changed to "Heil Dir im Sonderzug" ("Hail to Thee in Thy Royal Train"), owing to Wilhelm II's frequent travels.After the beginning ofWorld War I in 1914,Hugo Kaun set the text of the anthem to new music to remove the similarity to "God Save the King".[9]
"Die Wacht am Rhein" ("The Watch on the Rhine") was also a patriotic hymn so popular that it was often regarded as an unofficialnational anthem.[10]
In theKingdom of Bavaria, the official hymn was "Bayerische Königshymne" ("Heil unserm König, Heil!"), also sung to the melody of "God Save the King". Likewise,Liechtenstein has "Oben am jungen Rhein" (1920), sung to the same melody.
The Hawaiian anthem "Hawaiʻi Ponoʻī", composed by the PrussianKapellmeisterHenri Berger, is a variation of the melody.[11]
Notes
The melody was based on the Prussian hymn originally titled "Heil dir im Siegerkranz.
Sources
Media related toHeil dir im Siegerkranz at Wikimedia Commons| No anthem before First German nation state | Imperial anthem of theGerman Empire 1871–1918 | Succeeded byasnational anthem |
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