O Roma Nobilis
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''O Roma nobilis'' is a
Latin poem Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
probably written in
Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Northern Italy, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city Comune, municipality in the region and the ...
some time in the tenth century, and a traditional song for pilgrims arriving to the tombs of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in Rome.


Analysis


Structure

The medieval
paean A paean () is a song or lyric poem expressing triumph or thanksgiving. In classical antiquity, it is usually performed by a chorus, but some examples seem intended for an individual voice (monody). It comes from the Greek παιάν (also πα ...
poem ''O Roma nobilis'' is composed of three monorhymed stanzas of six verses in the form of an Asclepiadian ode.


Textual criticism

The first stanza praises Christian Rome, the second invokes the aid of
Saint Peter Saint Peter; he, שמעון בר יונה, Šimʿōn bar Yōnāh; ar, سِمعَان بُطرُس, translit=Simʿa̅n Buṭrus; grc-gre, Πέτρος, Petros; cop, Ⲡⲉⲧⲣⲟⲥ, Petros; lat, Petrus; ar, شمعون الصفـا, Sham'un ...
, and the third, that of
Saint Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
. The text is complete in only one manuscript kept at the
Vatican library The Vatican Apostolic Library ( la, Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana, it, Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana), more commonly known as the Vatican Library or informally as the Vat, is the library of the Holy See, located in Vatican City. Formally es ...
(Vat. lat. 3227) from the early 12th century; a second manuscript comes from the abbey of Monte Cassino (Monte Cassino 318) and is date from the 11th century but it carries only the first strophe.


History

''O Roma nobilis'' is a non-liturgical poem most frequently described, but without basis, as a medieval pilgrims' song. It is often associated to the other pilgrim hymn in honor of Saint Peter and Paul, ''O roma felix quae duorum principum''. Stemming back to the glory of the ''Roma aurea e aeterna'' of the Roman Empire, the language of exaltation of the Rome finds an echo in the 9th-century poetry of Liutprand of Cremona in ''Versus de Mediolani civitate''. The Beneventan script found in the earliest manuscripts of ''O Roma nobilis'' suggests an origin it was composed in or near the abbey of Monte Cassino, probably from the late ninth or early tenth century. O Roma nobilis was discovered anew in the early 19th century. Its literary fame rests mainly upon the studies of Barthold Georg Niebuhr from 1829 and
Ludwig Traube Ludwig Traube may refer to: *Ludwig Traube (physician) (1818–1876), German physician and co-founder of experimental pathology in Germany *Ludwig Traube (palaeographer) (1861–1907), his son, German paleographer {{hndis, Traube, Ludwig ...
in 1891. In 1941, the millennial hymn was translated into English by Irish author and journalist
Aodh de Blácam Harold Saunders Blackham ( ga, Aodh Sandrach de Blácam; 16 December 1891–16 January 1951) was an English-born Irish author journalist, and editor. He was associated with 20th century Irish nationalism through movements such as Sinn Féin, ...
. It was declared the official hymn of the holy year of 1950. In a show of ecclesial triumphalism, Igino Cecchetti published an essay entitled ''Roma nobilis'' in 1953 which received praise from the Jesuit review '' La Civiltà Cattolica'' in 1955. At the opening of the
Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st Catholic ecumenical councils, ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions) ...
,
Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death in June 19 ...
referred to this hymn when referring to the Apostle Peter as the title of honor for Rome, worthily celebrated in the words of this poem.


Music

As early as 1822 the poem was being sung in a choral setting by the papal choirmaster
Giuseppe Baini Abbate Giuseppe Baini (21 October 1775 – 21 May 1844) was an Italian priest, music critic, conductor, and composer of church music. He was born in Rome. He was instructed in composition by his uncle, Lorenzo Baini, and afterwards by G. Jann ...
, being popular not only in Rome, but also in Berlin, where Crown Prince
Frederick William IV Frederick William IV (german: Friedrich Wilhelm IV.; 15 October 17952 January 1861), the eldest son and successor of Frederick William III of Prussia, reigned as King of Prussia from 7 June 1840 to his death on 2 January 1861. Also referred to ...
heard Baini's setting of ''O Roma nobilis'' at the Singakademie in Berlin on November 27, 1827 and it reached even the ears of German poet
Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as treat ...
. Baini claimed to have drawn his melody from the not readily intelligible neumes of the Vatican manuscript. In 1909 at Fribourg, P. Wagner published the Vatican melody from the exact notation given in the Monte Cassino manuscript and demonstrated the complete inauthenticity of Baini's transcription. In both text and melody it is the matter of rhythm that largely occupies scholars today, although they are concerned also with the relation of the authentic melody of this poem to a secular piece, ''O admirabile Veneris idolum'', which is constructed on exactly the same plan. Original settings of ''O Roma nobilis'' were produced by
Franz Liszt Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...
in 1879 and Lorenzo Perosi in 1940.


Lyrics


References

{{reflist Catholic hymns Latin-language Christian hymns Latin poems Vatican City culture