Robert Stanley Weir (November 15, 1856 – August 20, 1926) was a

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

judge and poet most famous for writing the English lyrics to "

O Canada "O Canada" (french: Ô Canada, italic=no) is the national anthem of Canada. The song was originally commissioned by Lieutenant Governor of Quebec Théodore Robitaille for the 1880 Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day ceremony; Calixa Lavallée composed the mus ...

", the

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. He was educated as a teacher and lawyer and considered one of the leading experts of the day on Quebec's

municipal A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

civil law. He was appointed a municipal court judge and a judge for the

Exchequer Court of Canada In the civil service of the United Kingdom, His Majesty’s Exchequer, or just the Exchequer, is the accounting process of central government and the government's '' current account'' (i.e., money held from taxation and other government reve ...

. Weir published several individual poems in magazines and collections in books. His lyrics for the English version of "O Canada" eclipsed many others' lyrical attempts and songs to quickly become the most popular

patriotic Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and sense of attachment to one's country. This attachment can be a combination of many different feelings, language relating to one's own homeland, including ethnic, cultural, political or histor ...

song in Canada for the past century.

Early history

Robert Stanley Weir was born in

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Canada West The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report on the ...

, the son of William Park Weir and Helen Craig Smith, who had

emigrated Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

from

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to Canada in 1852. Weir moved to Montreal,

with his family as an infant, where his father became a Surveyor of Customs in the Port of

. His brother,

William Alexander Weir William Alexander Weir (October 15, 1858 – October 22, 1929) was a Quebec lawyer, politician, and judge. He was the MLA for Argenteuil in the Legislative Assembly of Quebec from 1897–1910, held several ministries, and helped rewrite ...

, was born there and would later become a Cabinet Minister in the Legislative Assembly of Quebec. Weir studied at McGill Normal School, Montreal, and at the age of 19, was appointed principal of Sherbrooke Street School, one of the newest and largest Montreal public schools at the time. He continued his studies at

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous ...

earning his

Bachelor of Civil Law Bachelor of Civil Law (abbreviated BCL, or B.C.L.; la, Baccalaureus Civilis Legis) is the name of various degrees in law conferred by English-language universities. The BCL originated as a postgraduate degree in the universities of Oxford and Cam ...

in 1880 and a

Doctor of Civil Law Doctor of Civil Law (DCL; la, Legis Civilis Doctor or Juris Civilis Doctor) is a degree offered by some universities, such as the University of Oxford, instead of the more common Doctor of Laws (LLD) degrees. At Oxford, the degree is a higher ...

in 1897. In 1882, he married Margaret (Gertie) Alexander Douglas, daughter of wealthy Montreal businessman Alexander Douglas. They had six children, two sons, Douglas (the eldest), and Albert (Ronald) Weir, (1901 - 1944), and four daughters, Beatrice, Winnifred, Marjorie and Dorothy Douglas Weir. Marjorie Douglas Weir would become known for her role in a movement to provide children's playgrounds in Montreal. Robert himself was known to be Vice-President of the Parks & Playgrounds association, in 1922. The family divided their time between Montreal and a summer home named Cedarhurst, in Cedarville, a picturesque hamlet on the east shore of

Lac Memphrémagog Lake Memphremagog (; french: Lac Memphrémagog) is a fresh water glacial lake located between Newport, Vermont, United States and Magog, Quebec, Canada. The lake spans both Quebec and Vermont, but is mostly in Quebec. Most of the watershed t ...

in the Eastern Townships of Quebec.

Career

From 1881, Weir practised law in Montreal and took a particular interest in municipal questions and had several of his studies published. In 1892, he ran unsuccessfully as a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

for the Montreal No. 4 riding of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec. In 1898, he was one of several eminent advocates appointed to revise the charter of the City of Montreal. It is believed that, in particular, he wrote many of the sections relating to expropriations and the power of the city to pass by-laws. On May 6, 1899, he was appointed

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for Montreal. During this time as a recorder, he also taught

liturgics Liturgics, also called liturgical studies or liturgiology, is the academic discipline dedicated to the study of liturgy (public worship rites, rituals, and practices). Liturgics scholars typically specialize in a single approach drawn from anoth ...

and

jurisprudence Jurisprudence, or legal theory, is the theoretical study of the propriety of law. Scholars of jurisprudence seek to explain the nature of law in its most general form and they also seek to achieve a deeper understanding of legal reasoning a ...

in the Congregational College of Canada, which was affiliated with McGill University. Weir later served as a municipal court judge and was considered an expert on the historical aspects of municipal law. He was later appointed a judge for the Exchequer Court of Canada in 1926. In 1923, he was honoured as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.

"O Canada"

In 1908, Weir wrote English lyrics for "

" while at his summer home, Cedarhurst, in time to honour the 300th anniversary of the founding of

Quebec City Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the metropolitan area had a population of 839,311. It is t ...

. The French version had originally been commissioned in 1880 by the Lieutenant Governor of Quebec,

Théodore Robitaille Théodore Robitaille, (29 January 1834 – 17 August 1897) was a Canadian physician, politician, and the fourth Lieutenant Governor of Quebec. Born in Varennes, Lower Canada, the son of Louis-Adolphe Robitaille (pronounced "ro-bee-tie") a ...

with lyrics by Sir Adolphe Basile Routhier and music composed by

Calixa Lavallée Calixa Lavallée (December 28, 1842 – January 21, 1891) was a French-Canadian-American musician and Union Army band musician during the American Civil War. He is best known for composing the music for "O Canada," which officially became the na ...

in time for the ' which was to be held on St. Jean Baptiste Day of that year. The popularity of the song grew quickly in Quebec and was played frequently at special events in the province. English versions began to appear almost immediately. The first evidence of official use of any version of "O Canada" in Anglophone Canada was 1901, when school children sang it for that year's tour of Canada by the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall, later

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

and Queen Mary). By the time Weir wrote his version in 1908, there were more than a hundred English quasi-translations of the French original (whose lyrics have never changed). But it was Weir's version that became the most popular one. The tune was already popular across the country, and with Weir's popular lyrics "O Canada" swiftly joined "God Save the King" as co-national anthem by custom, though neither of them had been statutorily declared national anthems. At the time of confederation in 1867, many Anglophones advocated for "

The Maple Leaf Forever "The Maple Leaf Forever" is a Canadian song written by Alexander Muir (1830–1906) in 1867, the year of Canada's Confederation. He wrote the work after serving with the Queen's Own Rifles of Toronto in the Battle of Ridgeway against the Fenia ...

" to be their national anthem. But while it was often used alongside "God Save the King" at official functions in Anglophone areas of the country, no French version was ever produced making it impossible for that song to ever become Canada's national anthem. Other alternatives faced similar problems. Many Canadians know only part of Weir's original 1908 lyrics, though this increasingly is changing, as digital information, reaches even remotest parts of Canada:

O Canada! Our home, our native land. True patriot love thou dost in us command. We see thee rising fair, dear land, The True North strong and free; And stand on guard, O Canada, We stand on guard for thee. O Canada! O Canada! O Canada, we stand on guard for thee! O Canada, we stand on guard for thee!

The complete form of the song, including Judge Weir's verses two through four, has increasingly recovered to reflection and modern usage among Canadians, as a hymnal spiritual expression of their appeal to God the "Ruler Supreme" of Canada's ongoing future, as Weir intended. A recent Youtube file entitled, "Song - Canadian national anthem "O Canada" - All four verses!" - which now approaches two and one half million views of a moving performance of Weir's original text - features heartwarming scenes & breath-taking views of Canada's landscape and its filial people, striking a resonant, unifying chord with modern Canadians. Weir's well considered doctrine for his fellow Canadians is reflected in the final verse, referencing the Better Day of Christ's return and an eternal "rich reward" awaiting Canadians who keep the faith and finish their race. The lyrics are: O Canada! Our home and native land, True patriot love in all thy sons command. With glowing hearts, we see thee rise, The True North strong and free. From far and wide, O Canada, We stand on guard for thee. God, keep our land glorious and free! O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. O Canada! Where pines and maples grow. Great prairies spread and lordly rivers flow. How dear to us thy broad domain, From East to Western sea. Thou land of hope for all who toil, Thou True North, strong and free! God, keep our land glorious and free! O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. O Canada! Beneath thy shining skies May stalwart sons and gentle maidens rise, To keep thee steadfast through the years From East to Western sea, Our own beloved native land, Our True North, strong and free! God, keep our land glorious and free! O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. Ruler Supreme, Who hearest humble pray’r, Hold our dominion within Thy loving care. Help us to find, O God, in Thee A lasting, rich reward, As waiting for the Better Day, We ever stand on guard. God, keep our land glorious and free! O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. The original French lyrics, written by Sir Adolphe-Basile Routhier in 1880 include lines like “ Le Canadien a grandi dans l'espoir. Il est né d'une race fière” which roughly translates to “ The Canadian grew up with hope. He was born of a proud race” and “Parmi les races étrangères, Notre guide est la loi” roughly meaning “Among foreign races, Our guide is the law” Weir amended the lyrics slightly in 1913, 1914 and 1916, ultimately producing the following version:

O Canada! Our home and native land. True patriot love in all thy sons command. With glowing hearts we see thee rise, The True North strong and free! And stand on guard, O Canada! We stand on guard for thee. O Canada, glorious and free. We stand on guard, we stand on guard for thee! O Canada! We stand on guard for thee!

One final change was made to the penultimate line after Weir died - and is preserved in a recording made by tenor Edward Johnson in 1928:

O Canada, glorious and free, We stand on guard, we stand on guard for thee! O Canada! We stand on guard for thee!

Became:

O Canada! Glorious and free! O Canada! We stand on guard for thee! O Canada! We stand on guard for thee!

The 1916 version, which is substantially shorter than the full song, continued to be used for official occasions until 1980, when Parliament changed the lyrics upon statutory adoption of "O Canada" as the national anthem (still with no change to the original French lyrics):

O Canada! Our home and native land! True patriot love in all thy sons command. With glowing hearts we see thee rise, The True North strong and free! From far and wide, O Canada, We stand on guard for thee. God keep our land glorious and free! O Canada, We stand on guard for thee. O Canada, We stand on guard for thee.

On February 7, 2018, legislation that proposed to change the line "True patriot love in all thy sons command" to "True patriot love in all of us command" received royal assent, and the change became law. Canada’s official National Anthem Act does not include Weir’s full song.

Death and legacy

Judge Robert Stanley Weir died on August 20, 1926 at

, Quebec, Canada. Weir's verses of "O Canada" were published in an official form for the Diamond Jubilee of

Confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a union of sovereign groups or states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

in 1927, and gradually became the most generally accepted anthem in English-speaking Canada, completely winning out over the alternatives by the 1960s. In seeking to enact "O Canada" as the national anthem officially, a Special Joint Committee of the Senate and

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

was struck. In 1968, the committee recommended changes to the English version–replacing one of the repeated phrases "We stand on guard for thee" with "From far and wide" and one "O Canada" with "God keep our land". The committee also thought it appropriate for the government to acquire

copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, educatio ...

to the words and music. Canadian copyright laws held for 50 years beyond the author's death so there was no trouble with the copyright for the music but the heirs of Weir objected to the changes to the words. Since Weir died in 1926, it would not be in the

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly waived, or may be inapplicable. Because those rights have expired, ...

until 1976. Evidence was found that the copyright had actually descended to Gordon V. Thompson, a music publisher, who agreed to sell it to the government in 1970 for the nominal sum of $1. The committee, however, still hoped to settle the matter amicably with Weir's family, if at all possible. Finally, on July 1, 1980, 100 years after Routhier and Lavallée penned the hymn, the National Anthem Act officially proclaimed the French and modified English versions as the National Anthem of Canada. Today, "

God Save the King "God Save the King" is the 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 plainchant, b ...

" is Canada's royal anthem, while "The Maple Leaf Forever" is rarely heard. Two provinces have adopted

Latin 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 ...

translations of phrases from the English lyrics as their mottos:

Manitoba , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Winn ...

—''Gloriosus et liber'' (glorious and free)— and

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

—''Fortis et liber'' (strong and free). Similarly, the motto of

Canadian Forces Land Force Command The Canadian Army (french: Armée canadienne) is the command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also respon ...

is ''Vigilamus pro te'' (we stand on guard for thee). As well, the motto for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics was "with glowing hearts". A postage stamp was issued in honour of Weir, Lavallée, and Routhier on June 6, 1980 and on May 24, 1999, a monument for Judge Weir was erected in Weir Memorial Park, on the shores of Lac Memphrémagog, near where he wrote the famous lyrics. A Montreal street is named ' in his honour. In recent years, the English version of the anthem has been criticized, by feminists such as Senator

Vivienne Poy Vivienne Poy (née Lee; ; born May 15, 1941) is a Canadian businesswoman, author and philanthropist. She served as a member of the Senate of Canada from 1998 until her retirement in 2012. Early life and education On May 15, 1941, Poy was ...

, for being sexist ("true patriot love in all thy ''sons'' command"); alternate lyrics ("in all of us command", "in all our hearts command" or "thou dost in us command") have been proposed but are not widely supported. Weir's grandson, Steve Simpson, says the word "son" is not about gender, but a reference to a patriotic command from a maternal goddess.Harper gov't says Canadian anthem lyrics won't change

Works

* Bills of Exchange Act 1890 * Education Act * Civil Code * Code of Civil Procedure * Municipal Code

Published works

* * * * * * * *

Notes

References

* Patty Brown

Retrieved June 20, 2005. * Ministry of Canadian Heritage (2004)
Ministry of Canadian Heritage
Retrieved June 20, 2005. * Gilles Potvin and Helmut Kallmann
The Canadian Encyclopedia: O Canada
Retrieved June 20, 2005. * Unicover Corporation (2005). . Retrieved June 20, 2005. * Comments of David Price published in Parliament of Canada (1999)
Hansard
Retrieved June 20, 2005. * Matthew Farfan (2002)

Retrieved June 20, 2005. * National Assembly of Quebec (2003)

in French. Retrieved June 20, 2005. * J. Cleophas Lamothe, Avocat & La Violette et Masse, Editors (1903). ''Histoire de la Corporation de la Cité de Montréal''. Montreal: Montreal Printing and Publishing. Retrieved June 20, 2005 fro

*

Henry James Morgan Henry James Morgan (November 14, 1842 – December 27, 1913) was a Canadian civil servant, lawyer, author and editor, probably best known for publishing collections of biographical sketches of notable Canadians. The son of Robert Morgan, a Scotti ...

, Editor (1912). ''Canadian Men & Women of the Time 1912''. Toronto: William Briggs. Retrieved June 20, 2005 fro
Notable Montrealers: Robert Stanley Weir
* Eugenia Powers (1993).
O Canada: shan't be chant - original French-Canadian national anthem
. ''Performing Arts & Entertainment in Canada'', 28 (2). * Speech of Vivienne Poy (2001). ''Debates of the Senate (Hansard)'', 1st Session, 37th Parliament, Vol. 139. Retrieved June 20, 2005 fro

External links

* Ministry of Canadian Heritag
National Anthem
* Lavallee, Calixa; Weir, R. Stanley; and Grant-Schaefer, G. A. (1914)

Montreal: Delmar Music Co. (archived at

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library ...

) * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Weir, Robert Stanley 1856 births 1926 deaths 19th-century Canadian poets Canadian male poets Canadian Unitarians Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada Writers from Hamilton, Ontario Writers from Montreal Canadian people of Scottish descent National anthem writers Judges in Quebec Anglophone Quebec people 19th-century Canadian male writers Judges of the Exchequer Court of Canada McGill University Faculty of Law alumni