In Treue fest (Steadfast and True) is a German military

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 ...

, written by military music composer

Carl Teike Carl Albert Hermann Teike (5 February 1864 – 28 May 1922) was a German composer who wrote over 100 military band, military march (music), marches and twenty concert works. Biography Born the son of a blacksmith in Stettin-Altdamm, Province ...

. It is not possible to trace down the origins of this march's accurate time and place of composition. The first front cover of the piano edition of the march “In Treue fest” was decorated by the

Flag of Bavaria There are officially two flags of Bavaria: the striped type and the lozenge type, both of which are white and blue. Both flags are historically associated with the royal Bavarian Wittelsbach family, which ruled Bavaria from 1180 to 1918. Overvie ...

and the royal coat-of-arms of Bavaria. It may be concluded that composer Carl Teike was inspired to write this march during his time in

Ulm Ulm () is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Danube on the border with Bavaria. The city, which has an estimated population of more than 126,000 (2018), forms an urban district of its own (german: link=no, ...

from 1883 to 1895. Carl Teike probably visited the

Neu-Ulm Neu-Ulm ( Swabian: ''Nej-Ulm'') is the capital of the Neu-Ulm district and a town in Swabia, Bavaria. Neighbouring towns include Ulm, Senden, Pfaffenhofen an der Roth, Holzheim, Nersingen and Elchingen. The population is 58,978 (31 December 2019 ...

's military post, which is located in Bavaria on the other side of

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 ...

. The motto “

In Treue fest ''In Treue fest'' (German for " steadfast in loyalty; firm in fidelity") was the motto of the Kingdom of Bavaria (1805–1918) and of its Wittelsbach rulers, after the end of World War I used by Bavarian monarchists. The motto originates a ...

” definitely attracted his attention, as it was prominently featured on the uniforms of the Bavarian soldiers, on their helmet plates and belt buckles. The motto “In Treue fest” has its roots in the highest military order of Bavaria, the Bavarian

Order of Saint Hubert The Royal Order of Saint Hubert (german: Sankt Hubertus Königlicher Orden), or sometimes (german: Königlicher Orden des Heiligen Hubertus) is a Roman Catholic dynastic order of knighthood founded in 1444 or 1445 by Gerhard VII, Duke of Jülic ...

, which was founded in 1444. The march was used as a competition song ( ja, 剛毅潔白) in the All-Japan Band Competition in 1958.

References

{{reflist German songs German military marches