"Hail, Columbia" is an American patriotic song and ceremonial entrance march of the

vice president of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The vice p ...

. It was originally considered to be one of the unofficial national anthems of the United States until 1931, when "

The Star-Spangled Banner "The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States. The lyrics come from the "Defence of Fort M'Henry", a poem written on September 14, 1814, by 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet Francis Scott Key after witnessing the ...

" was named as the official national anthem. Columbia is the name for the

national personification A national personification is an anthropomorphic personification of a state or the people(s) it inhabits. It may appear in political cartoons and propaganda. Some early personifications in the Western world tended to be national manifestation ...

of the United States which originated during the 18th century.

History

The music was composed by

Philip Phile Philip Phile (German: ''Pfeil'') ( 1734–1793) was a German-American composer and violinist. His year of birth is uncertain, but believed to be approximately 1734.http://www.voxnovus.com/resources/American_Composer_Timeline.htm American Compo ...

in 1789 for the

first inauguration of George Washington The first inauguration of George Washington as the first president of the United States was held on Thursday, April 30, 1789, on the balcony of Federal Hall in New York City, New York. The inauguration was held nearly two months after the be ...

and titled "The President's March". It became the song "Hail, Columbia" when arranged with lyrics by

Joseph Hopkinson Joseph Hopkinson (November 12, 1770January 15, 1842) was a United States representative from Pennsylvania and a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Education and career Bor ...

in 1798. The song gained popularity during the

XYZ Affair The XYZ Affair was a political and diplomatic episode in 1797 and 1798, early in the presidency of John Adams, involving a confrontation between the United States and Republican France that led to the Quasi-War. The name derives from the subs ...

and subsequent

Quasi-War The Quasi-War (french: Quasi-guerre) was an undeclared naval war fought from 1798 to 1800 between the United States and the French First Republic, primarily in the Caribbean and off the East Coast of the United States. The ability of Congress ...

with

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. The song was used in the United States as a de facto national anthem throughout the 19th century. However, the song lost popularity after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

until it was replaced by "

" in 1931. It was the personal anthem for the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

, until it was replaced by the song " Hail to the Chief", and it is now the official vice president's personal anthem. *
Citing: * The song is always preceded by four

ruffles and flourishes Ruffles and flourishes are preceding fanfare for honors music, ceremonial music for distinguished people. By country Israel In the Israeli Defence Forces, ruffles and flourishes are sounded as a guard of honor presents arms to signify the honors ...

when introducing the vice president. It has also been used as a slow march during military ceremonies, often while the band countermarches.

Lyrics

References

* * *

External links

MIDI of piano performance of "Hail, Columbia"
��Kids Pages,

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) conducts research into the effects of the environment on human disease, as one of the 27 institutes and centers of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). It is located in the Rese ...

Sheet music for "Hail, Columbia"
from

Project Gutenberg Project Gutenberg (PG) is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, as well as to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks." It was founded in 1971 by American writer Michael S. Hart and is the oldest digital libr ...

Score and Arrangements
from

IMSLP The International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP), also known as the Petrucci Music Library after publisher Ottaviano Petrucci, is a subscription-based digital library of public-domain music scores. The project, which uses MediaWiki softwa ...

{{Authority control 18th-century songs American patriotic songs Historical national anthems North American anthems Vice presidency of the United States

History

Lyrics

See also

References

Further reading

External links