''Boże, coś Polskę'' is a Polish Catholic patriotic

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...

. When

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

gained its independence in 1918, it competed with

Mazurek Dąbrowskiego ( "Dąbrowski's Mazurka"), in English officially known by its incipit Poland Is Not Yet Lost, is the national anthem of the Republic of Poland. The original lyrics were written by Józef Wybicki in Reggio Emilia, in Northern Italy, between ...

for the right to be the

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European n ...

of Poland.Boże, coś Polskę
Katolicka Agencja Informacyjna Its title is usually given as God Save Poland in English, as a hint to ''

God Save the King "God Save the King" is the national anthem, national and/or royal anthem of the United Kingdom, most of the Commonwealth realms, their territories, and the British Crown Dependencies. The author of the tune is unknown and it may originate in ...

''. Literally it is translated as "Lord, who Poland..." from the first lines of the hymn "Boże! Coś Polskę przez tak liczne wieki / Otaczał blaskiem potęgi i chwały...", "Lord! Who for so many ages enclosed Poland with the light of power and glory...". Other translations of the title (and the text of the hymn) exist, such as "O Thou Lord God".''A Sampler of Polish Folk Songs''
American Convention of Polish Cultural Clubs, 1954 The original text was authored by

Alojzy Feliński Alojzy Feliński (1771 – 1820) was a Polish writer. Life Feliński was born in Łuck. In his childhood he met Tadeusz Czacki. He was educated by the Piarists in Dąbrownica, later in Włodzimierz Wołyński. In 1778 he settled in Lublin ...

published in ''

Gazeta Warszawska ''Gazeta Warszawska'' (lit. ''Warsaw Gazette'') was the first newspaper published regularly in Warsaw for an extended period of time. Founded in 1774, it remained active under a variety of names until 1935. The names included the ''Gazeta Wolna ...

'' on July 20, 1816, to the glory of the monarch of the Congress Kingdom of Poland, i.e., the

Russian Emperor The emperor or empress of all the Russias or All Russia, ''Imperator Vserossiyskiy'', ''Imperatritsa Vserossiyskaya'' (often titled Tsar or Tsarina/Tsaritsa) was the monarch of the Russian Empire. The title originated in connection with Russia' ...

Alexander I Alexander I may refer to: * Alexander I of Macedon, king of Macedon 495–454 BC * Alexander I of Epirus (370–331 BC), king of Epirus * Pope Alexander I (died 115), early bishop of Rome * Pope Alexander I of Alexandria (died 320s), patriarch of ...

, which since 1818 was known under the title '. It caused a good deal of controversy and already in the next year the last line of the refrain was unofficially sung as ''Naszą ojczyznę racz nam wrócić, Panie'' ("deign to give us back our homeland, Lord") instead of '' Naszego króla zachowaj nam Panie!'' ("Save our king for us, Lord"). Over time the text was subject to other changes. In February 1817 a hymn ''Hymn do Boga o zachowanie wolności'' (''

incipit The incipit () of a text is the first few words of the text, employed as an identifying label. In a musical composition, an incipit is an initial sequence of notes, having the same purpose. The word ''incipit'' comes from Latin and means "it beg ...

'': ''O Ty! którego potężna prawica...'') by Antoni Gorecki was published. From the latter two stanzas were included into ''Boże, coś Polskę''.

Text sampler

Polish

The original text by Alojzy Feliński:Boże, coś Polskę..

Modern Poland Foundation Modern Poland FoundationEnglish name as used at https://nowoczesnapolska.org.pl/about-us/ ( pl, Fundacja Nowoczesna Polska) is a Polish non-governmental organization (NGO) based in Warsaw, focused on building open educational resources, developing ...

: ''Boże! Coś Polskę przez tak liczne wieki'' : ''Otaczał blaskiem potęgi i chwały'' : ''I tarczą swojej zasłaniał opieki'' : ''Od nieszczęść, które przywalić ją miały'' :: ''Przed Twe ołtarze zanosim błaganie,'' :: ''Naszego Króla zachowaj nam Panie!'' Final version: :Boże, coś Polskę przez tak liczne wieki :Otaczał blaskiem potęg i chwały, :Coś ją osłaniał tarczą swej opieki :Od nieszczęść, które przygnębić ją miały. ::Przed Twe ołtarze zanosim błaganie: ::Ojczyznę wolną racz nam wrócić, Panie!

Translations

From US congressional records:May 3, 1967 Congressional Record - House
p. 11624 :O God, who, for so many centuries :Has granted to Poland the splendor of might and glory, :Who, with the shield of Your protection, :Saved her from the misfortune designed to destroy her; :Before Your Altars, we offer our prayers: :Return to us, O Lord, our free fatherland. English version by

Mary McDowell Mary Eliza McDowell (November 30, 1854 – October 14, 1936) was an American social reformer and prominent figure in the Chicago Settlement movement. Early life Mary Eliza McDowell was born on November 30, 1854 to Malcolm and Jane Welch Gord ...

from ''Folk Songs of Many Peoples'': :O Thou Lord God, who for so many ages :Didst give to Poland splendor and might :Who shielded her from storms' wild rages :And kept her ever in Thy holy sight. :Father, we kneel to plead before Thy throne, :Give to us freedom, give to us our own!

References

{{reflist Catholic Church in Poland Polish Christian hymns