"" (; ) was a personal anthem to Francis II, Emperor of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...

and later of the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence, ...

, with lyrics by Lorenz Leopold Haschka (1749–1827) and music by

Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

. It is sometimes called the "Kaiserhymne" (; Emperor's Hymn). Haydn's tune has since been widely employed in other contexts: in works of

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

, in Christian hymns, in alma maters, and as the tune of the "

Deutschlandlied The "" (; "Song of Germany"), officially titled "" (; "The Song of the Germans"), has been the national anthem of Germany either wholly or in part since 1922, except for a seven-year gap following World War II in West Germany. In East German ...

", the national anthem of Germany.

Words and music

\new Staff << \clef treble \key g \major \new Lyrics \lyricmode >> \layout \midi The lyrics are as follows: Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser, unsern guten Kaiser Franz! Lange lebe Franz der Kaiser, in des Glückes hellstem Glanz! Ihm erblühen Lorbeerreiser, wo er geht, zum Ehrenkranz! Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser, unsern guten Kaiser Franz! God save Francis the Emperor, our good Emperor Francis! Long live Francis the Emperor in the brightest splendor of bliss! May laurel branches bloom for him, wherever he goes, as a wreath of honor. God save Francis the Emperor, our good Emperor Francis!

History

The song was written when Austria was seriously threatened by Revolutionary France and patriotic sentiments ran high. The story of the song's genesis was narrated in 1847 by Anton Schmid, who was Custodian of the Austrian National Library in Vienna: Saurau himself later wrote:

I had a text fashioned by the worthy poet Haschka; and to have it set to music, I turned to our immortal compatriot Haydn, who, I felt, was the only man capable of creating something that could be placed at the side of ... "
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 ...
".

"Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser" was first performed on the Emperor's birthday, 12 February 1797. It proved popular, and came to serve unofficially as Austria's first national anthem.

Composition

As elsewhere in Haydn's music, it has been conjectured that Haydn took part of his material from folk songs he knew. This hypothesis has never achieved unanimous agreement, the alternative being that Haydn's original tune was adapted by the people in various versions as folk songs. For discussion, see Haydn and folk music. Haydn Kaiserlied Skizze

Irrespective of the original source, Haydn's own compositional efforts went through multiple drafts, discussed by Rosemary Hughes in her biography of the composer. Hughes reproduces the draft fragment given below (i.e., the fifth through eighth lines of the song) and writes: "His sketches, preserved in the Vienna National Library, show the self-denial and economy with which he struggled to achieve

he song's He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' in ...

seemingly inevitable climax, pruning the earlier and more obviously interesting version of the fifth and sixth lines, which would have anticipated, and so lessened, its overwhelming effect." The original version of the song (see autograph score, above) included a single line for voice with a rather crude piano accompaniment, with no dynamic indications and what

David Wyn Jones David Wyn Jones (born 1950) is a British musicologist. He is an expert on music of the Classical period, including that of Haydn and Beethoven. Professional life Wyn Jones received his Ph.D. from the University of Wales in 1978, on the basis of a ...

calls "an unevenness of keyboard sonority". This version was printed in many copies (two different printers were assigned to the work) and sent to theatres and opera houses across the Austrian territories with instructions for performance. The Vienna premiere took place in the

Burgtheater The Burgtheater (literally:"Castle Theater" but alternatively translated as "(Imperial) Court Theater"), originally known as '' K.K. Theater an der Burg'', then until 1918 as the ''K.K. Hofburgtheater'', is the national theater of Austria in Vi ...

on 12 February 1797, the day the song was officially released. The Emperor was present, attending a performance of

Dittersdorf Dittersdorf is a municipality in the district Saale-Orla-Kreis, in Thuringia, Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Rus ...

's opera ''

Doktor und Apotheker ''Doktor und Apotheker'' (Doctor and Apothecary) is a German-language two-act singspiel by Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf, with a libretto by Johann Gottlieb Stephanie the Younger, based on the anonymous French comedy ''L'apothicaire de Murcie'' (T ...

'' and

Joseph Weigl Joseph Weigl (28 March 1766 – 3 February 1846) was an Austrian composer and conductor, born in Eisenstadt, Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is ...

's ballet ''Alonzo und Cora''. The occasion celebrated his 29th birthday. Not long after, Haydn later wrote three additional versions of his song: *He first wrote a version for

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

, called "much more refined" by Jones. *During 1797, Haydn was working on a commission for six string quartets from Count Joseph Erdödy. He conceived the idea of composing a slow movement for one of the quartets consisting of the Emperor's hymn as theme, followed by four

variations Variation or Variations may refer to: Science and mathematics * Variation (astronomy), any perturbation of the mean motion or orbit of a planet or satellite, particularly of the moon * Genetic variation, the difference in DNA among individuals ...

, each involving the melody played by one member of the quartet. The finished quartet, now often called the "Emperor" quartet, was published as the third of the Opus 76 quartets, dedicated to Count Erdödy. It is perhaps Haydn's most famous work in this genre. *The last version Haydn wrote was a piano reduction of the quartet movement, published by

Artaria Artaria & Co. () was one of the most important music publishing firms of the late 18th and 19th century. Founded in the 18th century in Vienna, the company is associated with many leading names of the classical era. History Artaria & Co. was foun ...

in 1799. The publisher printed it with the original cruder piano version of the theme, though a modern edition corrects this error.

Haydn's own view of the song

Joseph Haydn seems to have been particularly fond of his creation. During his frail and sickly old age (1802–1809), the composer often would struggle to the piano to play his song, often with great feeling, as a form of consolation; and as his servant Johann Elssler narrated, it was the last music Haydn ever played:

The ''Kaiser Lied'' was still played three times a day, though, but on 26 May
809 __NOTOC__ Year 809 (Roman numerals, DCCCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Spring – Siege of Serdica (809), Siege of Serdica: ...
at half-past midday the Song was played for the last time and that 3 times over, with such expression and taste, well! that our good Papa was astonished about it himself and said he hadn't played the Song like that for a long time and was very pleased about it and felt well altogether till evening at 5 o'clock then our good Papa began to lament that he didn't feel well...

Elssler goes on to narrate the composer's final decline and death, which occurred on 31 May.

Later uses of the tune in classical music

Later composers in the Western classical canon have repeatedly quoted or otherwise employed Haydn's tune, as is demonstrated by the following chronological list. As the tune was widely known, the uses by other composers were heard as quotations and served as an emblem of Austria, of Austrian patriotism, or of the Austrian monarchy. *

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...

quotes the last four bars in "Es ist vollbracht", WoO 97, the finale of Georg Friedrich Treitschke's

singspiel A Singspiel (; plural: ; ) is a form of German-language music drama, now regarded as a genre of opera. It is characterized by spoken dialogue, which is alternated with ensembles, songs, ballads, and arias which were often strophic, or folk-like ...

''Die Ehrenpforten'' (1815). The work celebrates the end of the Napoleonic Wars, essentially the same conflict that gave rise to Haydn's original hymn. It is seldom performed today. * Carl Czerny wrote Variations on "Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser" for piano and orchestra or piano and string quartet, his Op. 73 (1824). *

Philipp Jakob Riotte Philipp Jakob Riotte (16 August 1776 – 1856) was a German composer who lived primarily in Vienna. In the 1820s, his works were among the most-performed at the Theater an der Wien. He was a contemporary of Ludwig van Beethoven. Very few of his w ...

quotes the tune at the end of his battle piece ''Die Schlacht bei Leipzig'' in order to illustrate the joy after Napoleon's defeat in the

Battle of Leipzig The Battle of Leipzig (french: Bataille de Leipsick; german: Völkerschlacht bei Leipzig, ); sv, Slaget vid Leipzig), also known as the Battle of the Nations (french: Bataille des Nations; russian: Битва народов, translit=Bitva ...

. *

Gioachino Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer who gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano pieces, and some sacred music. He set new standards f ...

used the tune in the banquet scene of his 1825 opera '' Il viaggio a Reims'' for the German Baron Trombonok. * Niccolò Paganini wrote a set of variations on this tune for violin and orchestra in 1828, under the title ''Maestosa Sonata Sentimentale''. *

Gaetano Donizetti Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the '' bel canto'' opera style dur ...

used the tune in his opera ''

Maria Stuarda ''Maria Stuarda'' (Mary Stuart) is a tragic opera (''tragedia lirica''), in two acts, by Gaetano Donizetti, to a libretto by Giuseppe Bardari, based on Andrea Maffei's translation of Friedrich Schiller's 1800 play '' Maria Stuart''. The opera i ...

'' (1835), at act 3, scene 8, "Deh! Tu di un'umile preghiera ..." * Clara Schumann used the tune as the basis for her "Souvenir de Vienne", Op. 9 (1838) for solo piano. * Bedřich Smetana used the tune in his ''Festive Symphony'' (1853), which the composer intended to dedicate to the Emperor

Franz Joseph I of Austria Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the Grand title of the Emperor of Austria, other states of the Habsburg m ...

. *

Henryk Wieniawski Henryk Wieniawski (; 10 July 183531 March 1880) was a Polish virtuoso violinist, composer and pedagogue who is regarded amongst the greatest violinists in history. His younger brother Józef Wieniawski and nephew Adam Tadeusz Wieniawski were al ...

wrote a set of variations on the tune for unaccompanied violin (''Variations on the Austrian National Anthem'', from ''L'école Moderne'', Op. 10; 1853). *

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...

arranged the work for

in 1874, apparently in connection with a visit to Russia by the Austrian Emperor. The arrangement was published only in 1970. *

Anton Bruckner Josef Anton Bruckner (; 4 September 182411 October 1896) was an Austrian composer, organist, and music theorist best known for his symphonies, masses, Te Deum and motets. The first are considered emblematic of the final stage of Austro-Germ ...

wrote his '' Improvisationskizze Ischl 1890'' to be played on the organ during the wedding of Archduchess Marie Valerie of Austria. *

Béla Bartók Béla Viktor János Bartók (; ; 25 March 1881 – 26 September 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist, and ethnomusicologist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century; he and Franz Liszt are regarded as H ...

employed the theme in his symphonic poem '' Kossuth'' (1903); in this patriotic work about the failed Hungarian Revolution of 1848 the theme serves as an emblem for the Austrian enemy.

Use in national anthems, alma maters, and hymns

Austria-Hungary

After the death of Francis in 1835, the tune was given new lyrics that praised his successor, Ferdinand: "Segen Öst'reichs hohem Sohne / Unserm Kaiser Ferdinand!" ("Blessings to Austria's high son / Our Emperor Ferdinand!"). After Ferdinand's abdication in 1848, the original lyrics were used again because his successor ( Francis Joseph) was also named Francis. However, in 1854, yet again new lyrics were selected: "Gott erhalte, Gott beschütze / Unsern Kaiser, unser Land!" ("God preserve, God protect / Our Emperor, our country!"). There were versions of the hymn in several languages of the

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

(e.g., Czech, Serbo-Croatian, Slovene, Hungarian, Ukrainian, Polish, Italian). At the end of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

in 1918, the

was abolished and divided into multiple states, one of them being the residual state of

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, which was a

republic A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...

and had no emperor. The tune ceased to be used for official purposes. When the last Emperor,

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

, died in 1922,

monarchist Monarchism is the advocacy of the system of monarchy or monarchical rule. A monarchist is an individual who supports this form of government independently of any specific monarch, whereas one who supports a particular monarch is a royalist. ...

s created an original stanza for his son Otto von Habsburg. Since the emperor was in fact never restored, this version never attained official standing. The hymn was revived in 1929 with completely new lyrics, known as " Sei gesegnet ohne Ende", which remained the national anthem of Austria until the

Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germany ...

. The first stanza of the hymn's 1854 version was sung in 1989 during the funeral of Empress Zita of Austria and again in 2011 during the funeral of her son Otto von Habsburg.

Germany

Long after Haydn's death, his melody was used as the tune for

Hoffmann von Fallersleben August Heinrich Hoffmann (, calling himself von Fallersleben, after his hometown; 2 April 179819 January 1874) was a German poet. He is best known for writing "Das Lied der Deutschen", whose third stanza is now the national anthem of Germany, an ...

's poem ''Das Lied der Deutschen'' (1841). The third stanza (which begins with "''Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit''") is sung to the same melody, and is the present

national anthem of Germany The "" (; "Song of Germany"), officially titled "" (; "The Song of the Germans"), has been the national anthem of Germany either wholly or in part since 1922, except for a seven-year gap following World War II in West Germany. In East German ...

and formerly of

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

. The first verse of

Fallersleben Fallersleben is a part (''Ortsteil'') of the City of Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany, with a population of 11,269 (as of 2010). The village of Fallersleben was first mentioned in 942 under the name of ''Valareslebo''. Fallersleben became a city ...

's poem was formerly the national anthem of the

Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic (german: link=no, Weimarer Republik ), officially named the German Reich, was the government of Germany from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is al ...

, and later,

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

Hymns

In the ordinary nomenclature of hymn tunes, the melody of "Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser" is classified as 87.87D

trochaic In English poetic metre and modern linguistics, a trochee () is a metrical foot consisting of a stressed syllable followed by an unstressed one. But in Latin and Ancient Greek poetic metre, a trochee is a heavy syllable followed by a light one (al ...

metre The metre (British spelling) or meter (American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pref ...

. When employed in a hymn it is sometimes known as "Austria", or "Austrian Hymn". It has been paired with various lyrics. *Lyrics by John Newton which begin " Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken/Zion, city of our God" *Lyrics by

Samuel Longfellow Samuel Longfellow (1819–1892) was an American clergyman and hymn writer. Biography Samuel Longfellow was born June 18, 1819, in Portland, Maine, the last of eight children of Stephen Longfellow, Stephen and Zilpah (Wadsworth) Longfellow. His o ...

which begin "Light of ages and of nations" *Lyrics by an unknown author which begin "Praise the Lord, Ye Heavens Adore Him"

School Hymns

* The alma mater of

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, "

Stand, Columbia "Stand, Columbia" is the official alma mater of Columbia University in New York City, New York. It was written in Gilbert Oakley Ward for the university's 1902 Class Day ceremonies, and is sung to the tune of Joseph Haydn's "Gott erhalte Franz ...

" * The alma mater of the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the universit ...

* The alma mater of Western Reserve University (merged into

Case Western Reserve University Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a private research university in Cleveland, Ohio. Case Western Reserve was established in 1967, when Western Reserve University, founded in 1826 and named for its location in the Connecticut Western Reser ...

)

Lyrics

1797 original version

During Haydn's lifetime, his friend the musicologist

Charles Burney Charles Burney (7 April 1726 – 12 April 1814) was an English music historian, composer and musician. He was the father of the writers Frances Burney and Sarah Burney, of the explorer James Burney, and of Charles Burney, a classicist a ...

, made an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

translation of the first verse which is more poetical albeit less literal than the one given above:

God preserve the Emp'ror Francis Sov'reign ever good and great; Save, o save him from mischances In Prosperity and State! May his Laurels ever blooming Be by Patriot Virtue fed; May his worth the world illumine And bring back the Sheep misled! God preserve our Emp'ror Francis! Sov'reign ever good and great.

Burney's penultimate couplet about sheep has no counterpart in the original

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 ...

and appears to be Burney's own contribution.

1854 version

For translations into several of the languages that were spoken in the Austrian Empire, see Translations of Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser.

Notes

References

* * * * *

External links

* {{Authority control 1797 compositions Compositions by Joseph Haydn Historical national anthems Royal anthems National symbols of Austria-Hungary European anthems German-language songs National anthem compositions in G major Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor