Ashleigh McKinney Martin A5

Differences In National Anthems

The Marseillaise, God Save the Queen, and the Star Spangled Banner are all National Anthems for their country. They show their citizens devotion for their country. They have many differences, but also some similarities as well. They vary in tone, theme, and style and reflect the country and its differences. Their national anthems individualize them and set them apart from other countries.

The Marseillaise
The marseillaise is the national anthem of France. It was originally titled "Chant de guerre pour l'Arme du Rhin" meaning War Song of the Army of the Rhine. The mayor of
Strasbourg requested his guest Rouget de Lisle compose a song "that will rally our soldiers from

all over to defend their homeland that is under threat". The melody soon became the rallying call to the French Revolution and was adopted as La Marseillaise after the melody was first sung on the streets by volunteers from Marseillaise. The song's lyrics reflect the invasion of France by foreign armies when it was written. Strasbourg itself was attacked just a few days later.

God Save The Queen

God Save The Queen is the national anthem of England and other British territories. The author of the tune is unknown, and it may originate in plainchant, but a 1619 attribution to John Bull is

Ashleigh McKinney Martin A5

sometimes made. Depending on who is reigning at the time it can also be called God Save The King The sovereign and other royal family members are saluted in this honorary anthem. Since its first publication, different verses have been added and taken away and, even today, different publications include various selections of verses in various orders. In general only one or two verses are sung, but on rare occasions three. There have been several attempts to improve the song by rewriting the words.

Star Spangled Banner

"The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States of America. The lyrics come from "Defense of Fort McHenry" It was written in 1814 originally by Francis Scott Key. During the rainy night, Key had witnessed the bombardment of Baltimore and observed that the fort's smaller "storm flag" continued to fly, but once the shell and Congreve rocket barrage had stopped, he would not know how the battle had turned out until dawn. By then, the storm flag had been lowered and the larger flag had been raised. As you can see there are many differences and similarities between the three countries national anthems and they have different ways of expressing their devotion for their country. One anthem is an upbeat and difficult tune while another is slow paced and simple. My personal favorite is God Save the Queen, maybe because it was the national anthem I was first taught as a child since my mother planned to move back to Yorkshire when I was 3 or 4. I later learned the Star Spangled Banner which I wasnt as fond of the difficult and fast paces tune.

Ashleigh McKinney Martin A5