Vanishing National Anthems: Do We Still Know the Words?
Excerpted from “Vanishing National Anthems,” an essay for the Hillsdale College Churchill Project. For the original article with endnotes, obsolete verses, and more images, click here. To subscribe to weekly articles from Hillsdale-Churchill, click here, scroll to bottom, enter your email in the box “Stay in touch with us.” We never disclose or sell your email address which remains a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.
Vanishing fast
A London advertising firm proposed upgrading the image of the United Kingdom. “UK” must go, they said: it sounds like a radio station. What about Great Britain? “Too chauvinistic,” along with the Union Flag (“stodgy and captured now as a symbol of the radical right”). They proposed the word “Britain” on “a simple red and blue banner.” The national anthem also has to go: “It’s all very nice and emotional, but of course obsolete.”
There’s always been something faintly concerning to important or fancy people about national anthems. Early on, the disenchantment was relatively trivial.
During Queen Victoria’s Jubilee in 1897, Lady Randolph Churchill arranged for a young man with a music box to play God Save the Queen whenever Her Majesty sat down in her Jubilee dress. When she rose, the song stopped, only to recommence when she sat down again. (In mid-verse? One wonders….)
In the Age of Woke, anthems were subject to political theater. Athletes made wealthy by the society they deplore began “taking a knee” when the anthem was played. A diminishing number of public events omitted what was once the standard opening: “Ladies and gentlemen, our national anthem.” Anthems used to be sung in schools. Are they still?
Francis Scott Key’s American hymn
Americans “of a certain age” were taught national anthems in school. We learned how Francis Scott Key wrote The Star-Spangled Banner in 1814. Key was detained on a British warship in Baltimore Harbor during the shelling of Fort McHenry, in what Americans call the War of 1812.
Growing up in the Middle Ages, most of us kids sang at least two of Key’s four stanzas, although the obscure third stanza was unknown to us. Possibly its bloodthirsty sentiments were considered too violent for our youthful ears.
The journalist Bill Kristol noted that the first stanza alone is insufficient: “I looked up the anthem recently and was struck by the interesting differences between the four stanzas. One problem of singing only the first is that it ends in a question that’s answered in the next three.”9
Right. When the Star-Spangled Banner is sung at all, one hears only the first stanza, which is fashionably non-judgmental and inconclusive. (A few bombs burst but the flag still waves.) Possibly not one child in a thousand has ever heard the great coda of stanza four (“O thus be it ever…”), which we youngsters often sang.
On occasion we summoned up the eerie and mystical stanza two (“On the shore dimly seen…”). As for stanza three (“Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps pollution…”)—that shocking sentiment was confined to almanacs even when this writer went to school.
Inadequate substitutes
The single-stanza Star-Spangled Banner is under threat from alternate anthems. One proposed replacement is that Chamber of Commerce production America the Beautiful—widely admired because everyone can sing it. Vanished already are other noble anthems schoolchildren once lustily sang: God Bless America, Rodger Young, Columbia the Gem of the Ocean.
Britons tell of similar experiences and contrasts obfuscating the anthems of their schooldays. The blurring of national distinctions, eccentricities and quirks that make nations interesting or quaint or unique, is far advanced. In Cool Britannia, display of the Union Flag is considered by some the act of a fanatic. On my first visit in 1974, God Save the Queen closed out the evening news. Not anymore. Yet Britain’s right-thinkers might welcome verses that remind everyone that the monarch reigns but does not rule.
“Wolfe the dauntless…”
O Canada, the Canadian national anthem, has the advantage of being frequently sung in two different languages. A few lines have been changed to bring O Canada in line with modern concepts of sexual equality, which made good sense.
But another fine old Canadian song, The Maple Leaf Forever, containing such robust sentiments as “Wolfe the dauntless” planting “Britannia’s flag on Canada’s fair domain,” had to be rewritten. The toned-down winning entry was full of “blue unending skies” and “mountains strong and sparkling snow.” Ah, well.
“And he sang as he stowed him away into his tucker bag…”
Down Under, God Defend New Zealand seems to have survived intact, while Australians occasionally suggest replacing their resolute Advance Australia Fair with the whimsical but unmoving Waltzing Matilda. But Matilda will probably never be adopted, an Aussie friend says: “Apparently the music is some Gaelic tune. Nor would it be stylish to have an anthem whose words describe the activities of a sheep-stealer.”
The real national anthems
In Churchill Conferences past, up to five national anthems have been sung. So, while we briefly have your attention, here are all the stanzas of five national anthems from countries where Churchill organizations and memorial trusts exist. See that you remember them. There will be a quiz.
The Star-Spangled Banner
O say can you see, by the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hailed, at the twilight’s last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous fight,
O’er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets’ red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
On the shore dimly seen through the mists of the deep,
Where the foe’s haughty host, in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam,
In full glory reflected, now shines on the stream:
‘Tis the Star-Spangled Banner: O, long may it wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!
***
And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war, and the battle’s confusion,
A home and a country, should leave us no more?
Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps’ pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave:
And the Star-Spangled Banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.
O thus be it ever, when free men shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war’s desolation;
Blest with victory and peace, may the heaven-rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto, “In God is our trust.”
And the Star-Spangled Banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!
O Canada
O Canada! Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all of us command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North, strong and free!
From far and wide, O Canada,
We stand on guard for thee.
Refrain: God keep our land, glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee!O Canada, we stand on guard for thee!
O Canada! Where pines and maples grow.
Great prairies spread and lordly rivers flow.
How dear to us thy broad domain,
From East to Western Sea,
Thou land of hope for all who toil!
Thou True North, strong and free! (Refrain)
O Canada! Beneath thy shining skies,
May stalwart sons and gentle maidens rise,
To keep thee steadfast through the years,
From East to Western Sea,
Our own beloved native land!
Our True North, strong and free! (Refrain)
Ruler supreme, Who hearest humble prayer,
Hold our dominion within thy loving care;
Help us to find, O God, in thee
A lasting, rich reward,
As waiting for the Better Day,
We ever stand on guard. (Refrain)
Advance Australia Fair
Australians all let us rejoice,
For we are one and free;
We’ve golden soil and wealth for toil,
Our home is girt by sea.
Our land abounds in nature’s gifts,
Of beauty rich and rare;
In history’s page let every stage
Advance Australia Fair.
(Refrain) In joyful strains then let us sing, Advance Australia Fair!
Beneath our radiant Southern Cross
We’ll toil with hearts and hands;
To make this Commonwealth of ours
Renowned of all the lands;
For those who’ve come across the seas
We’ve boundless plains to share;
With courage let us all combine to
Advance Australia Fair. (Refrain)
The lyrics have been adjusted over the years, and some stanzas completely unlimited. Recently “Australians all” replaced “Australian sons,” for perfectly sound reasons. But the original stanzas two and three received the order of the boot, starting with one about Captain Cook:
When gallant Cook from Albion came
To trade wide oceans o’er;
True British courage bore him on,
Till he landed on our shore;
Then here he raised Old England’s flag,
The standard of the brave;
With all her faults we love her still,
Britannia rules the waves.
God Defend New Zealand
God of Nations at Thy feet,
In the bonds of love we meet,
Hear our voices, we entreat,
God defend our free land.
Guard Pacific’s triple star
From the shafts of strife and war,
Make her praises heard afar,
God defend New Zealand.
Men of every creed and race,
Gather here before Thy face,
Asking Thee to bless this place,
God defend our free land.
From dissension, envy, hate,
And corruption guard our state,
Make our country good and great,
God defend New Zealand.
***
Peace, not war, shall be our boast,
But should foes assail our coast,
Make us then a mighty host
God defend our free land.
Lord of battles in Thy might,
Put our enemies to flight,
Let our cause be just and right,
God defend New Zealand.
Let our love for Thee increase,
May Thy blessings never cease,
Give us plenty, give us peace,
God defend our free land.
From dishonour and from shame,
Guard our country’s spotless name
Crown her with immortal fame
God defend New Zealand.
May our mountains ever be
Freedom’s ramparts on the sea,
Make us faithful unto Thee,
God defend our free land.
Guide her in the nations’ van,
Preaching love and truth to man
Working out Thy glorious plan,
God defend New Zealand.
New Zealand’s national anthem is younger than the others, dating only to 1876, and is apparently non-judgmental enough to survive intact. It has English and Māori lyrics, with slightly different meanings and lately is sung in both languages. When Alan Keyes rehearsed for his presentation of five national anthems at the 1993 Churchill conference, he said this was the one he most liked learning. He did it justice, too.
God Save the King
God save our gracious King
Long live our noble King,
God save the King:
Send him victorious,
Happy and glorious,
Long to reign over us:
God save the King.
O Lord, our God, arise,
Scatter our enemies,
And make them fall:
Confound their politics,
Frustrate their knavish tricks,
On thee our hopes we fix:
God save us all.
Not in this land alone,
But be God’s mercies known,
From shore to shore!
Lord make the nations see,
That men should brothers be,
And form one family, The wide world o’er.
From every latent foe,
From the assassin’s blow,
God save the King!
O’er him thine arm extend,
For Britain’s sake defend,
Our father, prince, and friend,
God save the King!
Thy choicest gifts in store,
On him be pleased to pour;
Long may he reign:
May he defend our laws,
And ever give us cause
To sing with heart and voice
God save the King.
Little survives
Like The Star-Spangled Banner, God Save the King is now much abbreviated. Paul Courtenay, an expert on ceremonial forms, wrote: “Usually verse one alone is sung, although verse five is sometimes added. I don’t think verse two has been sung since the Second World War and I have never heard verses three or four sung.”
Sir Winston’s daughter Mary supported Paul’s impression, writing in her diary just after V-E Day: “I went with my parents to a great service of thanksgiving in St. Paul’s led by the King and Queen. Such was the mood that we were allowed to sing the second verse of the national anthem (usually a real no-no), bidding God arise to scatter the King’s enemies (Confound their politics / Frustrate their knavish tricks…)”10
That verse was still dubious at a celebration of Lady Soames’s birthday in Alaska in 2000. Soloist Keith Padden sang it anyway, with all the other stanzas. The assembly seemed to enjoy it, although the honoree thought we were going well over the top.
Royal scholar Rafal Heydel-Mankoo notes: “The term ‘anthem’ is a British creation. Between 1760 and 1781 it received only four formal theatre performances, but from 1781 to 1800 it saw over ninety.” It also provided the tune for the national anthems of Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Prussia, Bavaria, Saxony, and (briefly) Russia; and the American My Country ’Tis of Thee.
A story, perhaps apocryphal, involves HMS Prince of Wales sailing into Argentia for the Atlantic Charter meeting in August 1941. Aboard USS Augusta, the Marine band struck up God Save the King. President Roosevelt is reported to have cracked: “That’s the best rendition of My Country ’Tis of Thee I’ve heard in years!”
One thought on “Vanishing National Anthems: Do We Still Know the Words?”
Thank you for this fine article and its remembrance of anthems sung at several International Churchill Conferences. You are right that Ambassador Alan Keyes’s rendition of many verses of five nations’ national anthems at the 1993 conference was memorable. But his operatic singing goes back further, to a series of black tie Lincoln Day Dinners on February 12 that began at Harvard College in the 1970s, when he was a graduate student of Harvey Mansfield in government. Alan used to lead us in singing The Star Spangled Banner, the Battle Hymn of the Republic, and other songs of the Civil War era, such as Marching Through Georgia, by no means neglecting the lesser-known verses. Probably the culmination of these dinners was the one held at the Jefferson Hotel in Washington, D.C. on February 12, 1984, when the after-dinner speech was delivered by Professor Walter Berns, followed by a recitation from memory of the Gettysburg Address by Joseph Alsop. It was all written up the next day in the Style section of the Washington Post. Afterwards the entire party walked in the moonlight to the Lincoln Memorial, where Alan Keyes led us in singing all of the verses of the Battle Hymn of the Republic, after which we received a verbal warning from a dour National Park Service officer who mumbled something about “demonstrating without a permit.” We were impenitent. This experience led me later to suggest his bravura performance at the ICS conference in 1993.
As for the 2000 International Churchill Conference in Anchorage, it was Mary Soames’s second visit as guest of hono(u)r of The Right Honourable Sir Winston Spencer Churchill Society of Alaska. Her first visit had been in September several years earlier, when she first saw Mt. McKinley, as it was then known, and its twin peaks, which were named the Churchill Peaks in 1966; this time we were fortunate to host her on her birthday at dinner at Alyeska, in Girdwood. Not only the lesser-known verses of God Save the Queen were sung, as you noted, by Keith Padden, one of the Canaries who lead the assembled diners in singing Harrow School songs at our annual birthday dinners on November 30 at the Hotel Captain Cook, which always flies the Union flag in honor of its namesake, along with Old Glory and the Alaska flag with the Big Dipper and the North Star; but we also heard Solveig Barber sing several verses of O Canada in both English and French, and Sharon Jones, who had also sung with the Canaries when we first hosted Lady Soames, led diners in singing all four verses of The Star-Spangled Banner.
Anent our national anthem, I would like to invite people all over the world who may be visiting Alaska on Independence Day (for most of our visitors do come in the summer) to join us at the Veterans’ Memorial Flagpole on the Delaney Park Strip in downtown Anchorage at 1.00 p.m. on any July 4 for the annual reading of the Declaration of Independence. Each year we sing all four verses of The Star-Spangled Banner, and Sharon Jones has also been one of those who has led the singing at that event. We introduce visitors to our state song, Alaska’s Flag, before ending the ceremony with the ringing of a bell once for each year of American independence. The program begins with the singing of Fair Harvard, using the traditional words of the song, because it is organized by the Harvard Club of Alaska as a tribute from an older association, Harvard College (1636) to a younger one, the United States of America (1776). In these days when Harvard ought to be brought back to its noble purpose, this annual ceremony, which goes back almost three decades, reminds us, along with its graduates’ distinguished service in the War to Save the Union, Winston Churchill’s 1943 speech at Harvard, and Harvey Mansfield’s distinguished career of teaching, that Harvard at least has an admirable past.