"Sei gesegnet ohne Ende" (; English translation: ''Be Blessed Without End''), also known as the ″Kernstock-Hymne″, is a

German language German ( ) is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Italian province of South Tyrol. It is also a ...

song that was 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 ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

from 1929 until 1938. Written by Ottokar Kernstock, it was sung to the famous tune of "

Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser "" (; ) was a personal anthem to Francis II, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire and later of the Austrian Empire, with lyrics by Lorenz Leopold Haschka (1749–1827) and music by Joseph Haydn. It is sometimes called the "Kaiserhymne" (; Emperor's ...

" by

Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions to musical form have le ...

, better known as the tune of the "

Deutschlandlied The "" (; "Song of Germany"), officially titled "" (; "The Song of the Germans"), has been the national anthem of Germany either wholly or in part since 1922, except for a seven-year gap following World War II in West Germany. In East German ...

", which since 1922 has been the national anthem of

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

History

The first but unofficial anthem of the

First Austrian Republic The First Austrian Republic (german: Erste Österreichische Republik), officially the Republic of Austria, was created after the signing of the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye on 10 September 1919—the settlement after the end of World War I w ...

was ''

Deutschösterreich, du herrliches Land "Deutschösterreich, du herrliches Land" (German for "German Austria, you wonderful country") was the national anthem of Austria from 1920 to 1929. Although it was used as the national anthem, it did not enjoy any official status. It is now used a ...

'' (" German-Austria, you Glorious Land"). Written in 1920 by

Karl Renner Karl Renner (14 December 1870 – 31 December 1950) was an Austrian politician and jurist of the Social Democratic Workers' Party of Austria. He is often referred to as the "Father of the Republic" because he led the first government of German ...

and set to music by

Wilhelm Kienzl Wilhelm Kienzl (17 January 1857 – 3 October 1941) was an Austrian composer. Biography Kienzl was born in the small, picturesque Upper Austrian town of Waizenkirchen. His family moved to the Styrian capital of Graz in 1860, where he studied t ...

, the patriotic song was not able to successfully compete against the former imperial anthem and especially the latter's famous tune by

.Bruckmüller, Ernst. ''Nation Österreich. Kulturelles Bewußtsein und gesellschaftlich-politische Prozesse''. Wien, Köln, Graz: Böhlau-Verlag, 1996. Page 102. In 1929, a new anthem was introduced that was sung to this popular tune and whose text stemmed from Ottokar Kernstock, who had written it in 1920. The third verse of the poem was, however, excluded from the official status as national anthem. The song remained in use in both the First Republic and the Federal State of Austria but became obsolete in 1938, when Austria joined the

German Reich German ''Reich'' (lit. German Realm, German Empire, from german: Deutsches Reich, ) was the constitutional name for the German nation state that existed from 1871 to 1945. The ''Reich'' became understood as deriving its authority and sovereignty ...

. It was not the only proposal for a new Austrian national anthem.

Anton Wildgans Anton Wildgans (17 April 1881 – 3 May 1932) was an Austrian poet and playwright. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature four times. Life Born in Vienna, Wildgans studied law at the University of Vienna, from 190 ...

asked

Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer, conductor, pianist, and violinist. Considered a leading composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras, he has been described as a successor of Richard Wag ...

to set one of his poems, ''Österreichisches Lied'' ("Austrian Song"), to music. Although Strauss did so, the music to the poem did not become popular. Here are excerpts of the poem: The introduction of the ''Kernstockhymne'' actually led to chaos, as everyone sang different lyrics to the same tune, depending on their political standpoints. The school council of

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

decreed that people should sing '' Deutschland über alles'', the Ministry of Education demanded for everyone to sing the ''Kernstockhymne''. Consequently, people sang the anthem that fitted their personal political views: the former imperial anthem, the ''Kernstockhymne'', or the ''

'', which often led to dissonance when the national anthem was sung publicly.Steinbauer, Johannes. ''Land der Hymnen: eine Geschichte der Bundeshymnen Österreichs''. Wien: Sonderzahl-Verlag, 1997. Page 82. Since 1936, it had become customary to also sing the ''Lied der Jugend'' as part of the national anthem, thus honouring the murdered chancellor

Engelbert Dollfuß Engelbert Dollfuß (alternatively: ''Dolfuss'', ; 4 October 1892 – 25 July 1934) was an Austrian clerical fascist politician who served as Chancellor of Austria between 1932 and 1934. Having served as Minister for Forests and Agriculture, he ...

. As the ''Kernstockhymne'' had never gained popularity, no attempt was made to reinstate it as the national anthem after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

Words

Lyrics of the anthem

Lines from the poem

References

External links