The Frankenlied (Song of Franconia), or Lied der Franken (The Franconians' song) is the unofficial

anthem An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to short ...

of the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

region of

Franconia Franconia (german: Franken, ; Franconian dialect: ''Franggn'' ; bar, Frankn) is a region of Germany, characterised by its culture and Franconian dialect (German: ''Fränkisch''). The three administrative regions of Lower, Middle and Upper F ...

, and one of the most popular German commercium songs. It is also sung at official occasions in the

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...

Lower Franconia Lower Franconia (german: Unterfranken) is one of seven districts of Bavaria, Germany. The districts of Lower, Middle and Upper Franconia make up the region of Franconia. History After the founding of the Kingdom of Bavaria the state was total ...

Middle Franconia Middle Franconia (german: Mittelfranken, ) is one of the three administrative regions of Franconia in Bavaria, Germany. It is located in the west of Bavaria and borders the state of Baden-Württemberg. The administrative seat is Ansbach; however, ...

, and Upper Franconia. The text of the hymn was written by

Joseph Victor von Scheffel Joseph Victor von Scheffel (16 February 1826 – 9 April 1886) was a German poet and novelist. Biography He was born at Karlsruhe. His father, a retired major in the Baden army, was a civil engineer and member of the commission for regulating the ...

in 1859, the melody was composed by

Valentin Eduard Becker Valentin Eduard Becker (20 November 1814 Würzburg - 25 January 1890 Würzburg) was a German music, German composer. Biography Becker became known as a composer in Würzburg for popular male choir, choruses (''Das Kirchlein'' and others). He al ...

in 1861.

Origins

Scheffel originally wrote the song as a hiking song in order to capture the wanderlust literarily in 1859. Back then, the writer, who was born in the

Grand Duchy of Baden The Grand Duchy of Baden (german: Großherzogtum Baden) was a state in the southwest German Empire on the east bank of the Rhine. It existed between 1806 and 1918. It came into existence in the 12th century as the Margraviate of Baden and sub ...

, spent a couple of weeks at the Franconian

Banz Castle Banz Abbey (german: Kloster Banz), now known as Banz Castle (german: Schloss Banz), is a former Benedictine monastery, since 1978 a part of the town of Bad Staffelstein north of Bamberg, Bavaria, southern Germany. History The abbey was founde ...

, located near the

Staffelberg The Staffelberg is a hill in Bavaria, Germany. It is part of the Franconian Switzerland and one of the most important landmarks in Franconia. First settlements date from the Neolithic. Romans, Celts and Franconians followed. During the La Tèn ...

. Various versions of the song exist on the internet and in songbooks. The lyrics themselves also contain inconsistencies in regard to content. The ''patron saint of the vintners'' is not actually Saint Kilian—the patron saint of Franconia—but Saint Urban of Langres. Apart from that, a ''Saint Veit of Staffelstein'' does not exist, but a ''Saint Veit of the Ansberg'', whose chapel is located on the Ansberg hill near Dittersbrunn, a district of

Ebensfeld Ebensfeld is a municipality in the district of Lichtenfels in Bavaria in Germany. It lies on the river Main. Sons and daughters of the town * Georg Meixner (1887-1960), German Catholic priest and Bavarian politician * Rudolf Lunkenbein (1939 ...

, does. However, it could also be one of the

Fourteen Holy Helpers The Fourteen Holy Helpers (german: Vierzehn Nothelfer, la, Quattuordecim auxiliatores) are a group of saints venerated together by Roman Catholic Christians because their intercession is believed to be particularly effective, especially agai ...

who are venerated in the Basilica of the Fourteen Holy Helpers located near

Bad Staffelstein Bad Staffelstein is a small town in the Bavarian Administrative Region of Upper Franconia in Germany. It has around 10,000 inhabitants. Bad Staffelstein is known for several landmarks, such as the Basilica of the Vierzehnheiligen designed by B ...

. The best explanation for this discrepancy may be derived from the Staffelberg's history. From 1696 to 1929, religious

hermit A hermit, also known as an eremite ( adjectival form: hermitic or eremitic) or solitary, is a person who lives in seclusion. Eremitism plays a role in a variety of religions. Description In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a C ...

s were living on the hill. Von Scheffel may thus have meant the hermit Ivo Hennemann who was living on the Staffelberg at the time. In the lyrics, von Scheffel describes how he ascends to "Veit" (see 4th stanza) and drinks his wine (see 6th stanza).

Sheet music

* as audio example, created in Finale 2010

Lyrics

¹ depending on the recorded text version, "allerschönsten" (most beautiful; most received version), "allersonn'gsten" (most sunny), or "allersonnigsten" (most sunny; cannot be sung as it has one syllable too much)

Franconian additions

The additional stanzas seven, eight, and nine, which were written by Gerd Bachert, Hermann Wirth, and Karl Frisch, are not officially part of the Frankenlied. In them, the writers criticise the attempted annexation of Franconia by Bavaria caused by Napoleon.

External links

{{German patriotic songs German anthems Regional songs