''Hakkapeliittain Marssi'' ("March of the ''Hakkapeliittas''") (Swedish: ''Finska Rytteriets Marsch'', "March of the Finnish Cavalry") is a

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

and

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

military (specifically,

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

)

march March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the second of seven months to have a length of 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of Marc ...

, and one of the oldest currently played.

Background

The march originates from the times of

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...

when Finnish cavalrymen were known as ''

Hakkapeliitta Hakkapeliitta (Finnish language, Finnish pl. ''hakkapeliitat'') is a historiographical term used for a Finns, Finnish light cavalryman in the service of King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden during the Thirty Years' War (1618 to 1648). Hakkapeliitta ...

'' and it became popular with

military bands A military band is a group of personnel that performs musical duties for military functions, usually for the armed forces. A typical military band consists mostly of wind and percussion instruments. The conductor of a band commonly bears the tit ...

. It was given lyrics (in Swedish) in 1872 by

Zacharias Topelius Zachris Topelius (, ; 14 January 181812 March 1898) was a Finnish author, poet, journalist, historian, and rector of the University of Helsinki who wrote novels related to Finnish history. Given name Zacharias is his baptismal name, and this ...

and is commonly known as the "March of the Finnish Cavalry during the Thirty Years War". The

Prussian Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

army officially adopted it for use in 1891; it is now a standard of the German marching band repertoire. In Finland the march is currently the honorary march of the

Finnish Army The Finnish Army (Finnish: ''Maavoimat'', Swedish: ''Armén'') is the land forces branch of the Finnish Defence Forces. The Finnish Army is divided into six branches: the infantry (which includes armoured units), field artillery, anti-aircraft ...

and the Defence Command.Maavoimien historia ja perinteet
History of the Finnish Army. Finnish Defence Forces. Retrieved 2020-09-30. Previously the march was used by Häme Cavalry Regiment and Uusimaa Dragoon Regiment with their respective trumpet signals. The march is also the official regimental march of the Swedish Småland Grenadier Corps (No 7), the Karlskrona Grenadier Regiment (I 7), the Småland Hussar Regiment (K 4), the

Norrbotten Regiment The Norrbotten Regiment ( sv, Norrbottens regemente), designation I 19, is a Swedish Army arctic armoured, light infantry and commando regiment that traces its origins back to the 19th century. The regiment's soldiers were originally recruited fr ...

(I 19) and the

Norrbotten Brigade The Norrbotten Brigade ( sv, Norrbottensbrigaden), also NMekB 19, is a Swedish Army mechanized brigade located in the province of Norrbotten, active since 2022. It was previously active from 1949 to 2000. The brigade is located at Boden Garrison, ...

(MekB 19). The Finnish composer

Uuno Klami Uuno (Kalervo) Klami (20 September 1900, Virolahti – 29 May 1961, Virolahti) was a Finnish composer of the modern period. He is widely recognized as one of the most significant Finnish composers to emerge from the generation that followed ...

developed a free orchestral version of this theme under the title "Suomalaisen ratsuväen marssi" ("March of the Finnish Cavalry" op. 28) in 1939. The Finnish poet

Eino Leino Eino Leino (born Armas Einar Leopold Lönnbohm; 6 July 1878 – 10 January 1926) was a Finnish poet and journalist who is considered one of the pioneers of Finnish poetry and a national poet of Finland. His poems combine modern and Finnish fol ...

published another "Hakkapeliittain Marssi" as part of a collection by the name of ''Tähtitarha'' ("Garden of stars") in 1912.

Names

The march is known by several names in different languages: *

: **''Hakkapeliittain marssi'' ("March of the ''Hakkapeliittas''") **''Suomalaisen ratsuväen marssi 30-vuotisessa sodassa'' ("March of the Finnish cavalry in the Thirty Years' War") *

: **''Finska rytteriets marsch'' ("March of the Finnish cavalry") **''Finska rytteriets marsch i trettioåriga kriget'' ("March of the Finnish cavalry in the Thirty Years' War") *

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 **Ge ...

: **''Marsch der Finnländischen Reiterei im 30-jährigen Kriege'' ("March of the Finnish cavalry in the Thirty Years' War") **''Schwedischer Reitermarsch'' ("Swedish cavalry march")

Lyrics

Finnish

Original

:; On Pohjolan hangissa meill' isänmaa :;sen rannalla loimuta lietemme saa :;käs' säilöjä käyttäiss' on varttunut siell' :;on kunnialle, uskolle hehkunut miel' :Kun ratsujamme Nevan vuossa uitettihin :kuin häihin se ui yli Veikselinkin; :Ja kalpamme kostavan Reinille toi :ja Tonavasta Keisarin maljan se joi! :Kun raunion, tuhkan yli lennetähän, :niin kaviotpa loimun luo säihkyävän' :Jok' isku se hehkuu kuin aamun koi :ja vapauden puolesta säilämme soi!"

Alternative

:;On pohjolan hangissa maa isien :;saa loimuta lietemme rannoilla sen :;me kasvoimme kalpaan mi mainetta suo :;ja uskon huomisen kun sä luontoomme luot :Ja ratsuamme Nevan vuossa juotettihin :se uljaasti ui yli Veikselinkin! :Se kalpamme Reinin rannalle toi :ja Tonavasta Keisarin maljan se joi! :Yli rovion tuhkan kun karautamme :tuli kipunoi kavioista ratsujemme! :Ja missä nämä säilämme säihkyy ja lyö :siel vapaus on kallistunut ja väistyköön!

Swedish

Original

:; Den snöiga nord är vårt fädernesland, :; där sprakar vår härd på den stormiga strand, :; där växte vid svärdet vår seniga arm, :; där glödde för tro och för ära vår barm. :Vi vattnade i Nevans bad vår frustande häst :han sam över Weichseln så glad som till fest, :han bar över Rhen vårt hämnande stål, :han drack utur Donau kejsarens skål. :Och rida vi fram öfver slätter och däld, :så springa ur hofvarna gnistor af eld, :så haglar vårt hugg som ett hammarslag, :så ljusnar för världen en framtids dag. :Var tröst, du som suckar i mörker och band! :Vi komma, vi komma, vi lösa din hand. :Där pustar ej träl i vår frostiga nord; :friborne vi rida i fält för Guds ord. :Vid Breitenfeld vi togo Pappenheim i vår famn; :vi skrefvo på Kronenbergs brynja vårt namn; :vi svedde grått skägg för Tilly vid Lech; :vi blödde med kungsblod vid Lützens häck. :Och rida vi långt från vårt nordliga spår, :till glödande druvor och blödande sår, :så smattra trumpeterna segerbud. :Hugg in, tappra led! Fram! Med oss är Gud.

English

Literal translation

:;The snowy north is our fatherland; :;there our hearth crackles on the stormy beach. :;There our sinewy arm grew by the sword, :;there our chest burned with faith and honour. :We watered our snorting horse in the Neva's bath; :he swam across the Vistula as happy as to a feast, :he carried our avenging steel over the Rhine, :he drank the emperor's toast from the Danube. :And if we ride forth over ash and gravel, :from the hoofs spring sparks of light, :each cut like the blow of a hammer descends :and for the world a future day dawns. :Take heart, you who dwell in darkness and chains! :We’re coming, we’re coming, we will free your hand. :Slaves do not sigh in our frosty North; :freeborn we ride into the field for God’s word. :At Breitenfeld we took Pappenheim into our arms; :we wrote on Kronenberg’s armour our name; :we burnt Tilly’s beard grey at Lech; :we bled with our King’s blood at Lützen’s hedge. :And if we ride far from our northern track, :to glowing grapes and bleeding wounds, :then the trumpets call the message of our victory. :Cut them down, brave ranks! Forward! With us is God.

Poetic translation

:;Our homeland lies in the snows of the North; :;the hearth of the home glowing warm and strong :;Our hand has grown sure with playing the sword :;and honour and pure faith lies in our record :At the river

Neva The Neva (russian: Нева́, ) is a river in northwestern Russia flowing from Lake Ladoga through the western part of Leningrad Oblast (historical region of Ingria) to the Neva Bay of the Gulf of Finland. Despite its modest length of , it ...

our mounts did draw their first blood :like in a wedding march they went across the

Vistula The Vistula (; pl, Wisła, ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest river in Europe, at in length. The drainage basin, reaching into three other nations, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra in ...

flood :Our swords they did bring to the

Rhineland The Rhineland (german: Rheinland; french: Rhénanie; nl, Rijnland; ksh, Rhingland; Latinised name: ''Rhenania'') is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly its middle section. Term Historically, the Rhinelands ...

's coast :and by the

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...

they raised up the

Emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

's toast! :And if forth over ash and gravel we ride, :the hoofs sparking light from its hidden hide; :Like a dawn, every hit will brightly shine :and for freedom our blades very audible chime! :Like a dawn, every hit will brightly shine :and for freedom our blades very audible chime! Source

External links

the melody of Hakkapeliittain MarssiMidi tuneOrchestral mp3 version
by th
Finnish Cavalry Tradition Band

References

{{authority control Finnish military marches 1872 songs Swedish military marches