"U boj, u boj" (Croatian for "To battle, to battle") is a

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

n patriotic song. It was written by

Franjo Marković Franjo Marković (or Franjo pl. Marković; July 26, 1845 in Križevci – September 15, 1914 in Zagreb) was a Croatian philosopher and writer. He was an academician, the first professor of philosophy at the renovated University of Zagreb in 1874 ...

and composed by

Ivan Zajc Ivan Zajc (also hr, Ivan plemeniti Zajc, it, Giovanni de Zaytz; ; August 3, 1832 – December 16, 1914), was a Croatian composer, conductor, director, and teacher who dominated Croatia's musical culture for over forty years. Through his ar ...

in 1866, who later incorporated it as an

aria In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...

into his

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

Nikola Šubić Zrinski Nikola IV Zrinski or Miklós IV Zrínyi ( hu, Zrínyi Miklós, ; 1507/1508 – 7 September 1566), also commonly known as Nikola Šubić Zrinski (), was a Croatian nobleman and general, Ban of Croatia from 1542 until 1556, royal master of the tr ...

'' (1876) where it is sung by a male

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

. It is a retelling of the

Battle of Szigetvár A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

of 1566, in which

Nikola IV Zrinski Nikola IV Zrinski or Miklós IV Zrínyi ( hu, Zrínyi Miklós, ; 1507/1508 – 7 September 1566), also commonly known as Nikola Šubić Zrinski (), was a Croatian nobleman and general, Ban of Croatia from 1542 until 1556, royal master of the tr ...

Ban of Croatia Ban of Croatia ( hr, Hrvatski ban) was the title of local rulers or office holders and after 1102, viceroys of Croatia. From the earliest periods of the Croatian state, some provinces were ruled by bans as a ruler's representative (viceroy) an ...

and captain of the assembled Croatian and Hungarian forces, took a heroic last stand against overwhelming Ottoman forces, led personally by

Suleiman the Magnificent Suleiman I ( ota, سليمان اول, Süleyman-ı Evvel; tr, I. Süleyman; 6 November 14946 September 1566), commonly known as Suleiman the Magnificent in the West and Suleiman the Lawgiver ( ota, قانونى سلطان سليمان, Ḳ� ...

. Though the fortress fell, the defenders inflicted grievous injuries on the assaulting forces, all but crippling the victors' ability to progress past the Croatian-Hungarian border, and causing the death of the sultan himself. The choir version of the song enjoys a wide popularity in Japan where for a long time it was thought to be a Czech folk song. After the end of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the American ship ''Heffron'', evacuating Czech and Slovak soldiers from Siberia, among whom this Croat song was widely popular during the war, was damaged by a storm and was forced to settle in the

Kobe Kobe ( , ; officially , ) is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture Japan. With a population around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in Kansai region, whic ...

harbour for 2 months for repair. During that period, the soldiers passed on the tune to the members of the oldest and the most renowned Japanese male choir of the

Kwansei Gakuin University , colloquially known as , is a private, non-denominational Christian coeducational university in Japan. The university offers Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctoral degrees to around 25,000 students in almost 40 different disciplines across 11 u ...

, established in 1899. Their repertoire hosts the song (which is learned not in Japanese, but in genuine Croatian) to this day, ending with it each of their public performances. (This source misspells the ship's name as ''Hefron''.)

Text

U boj, u boj! Mač iz toka, braćo, nek dušman zna kako mremo mi! Grad naš već gori, stiže do nas već žar: rik njihov ori, bijesan je njihov jar! K'o požar taj grudi naše plamte, utiša rik mača naših zvek! K'o bratac brata Zrinskog poljub'te svi! Za njim na vrata, vjerni junaci vi! Sad, braćo! Pun'mo puške, samokrese, naše grome, naše trijese, neka ore, ruše, more! Brus'mo ljute naše mače, neka sijeku jače, jače! Sad zbogom bud', dome naš zauvijek, oj, zbogom, od svud i svud na te dušman ide prijek. I već u grob sveti trup sklada tvoj, al' neće! Za te sin svak u boj se kreće! Dome naš, ti vijekom stoj! Hajd' u boj, u boj! Za dom, za dom sad u boj! Ma paklena množ na nj diže svoj nož; Hajd' u boj! Nas mal, al' hrabar je broj! Tko, tko će ga strt'? Smrt vragu, smrt! Za domovinu mrijeti kolika slast! Prot dušmaninu! Mora on mora past'! To battle, to battle! Unsheathe your swords, brethren, Let the foe see how we die! Our city already burns, The heat is already reaching us: Their roar resounds, Their rage is rampant! Our chests flare up as that fire, The roar is silenced by the rattling of our swords! Like brothers, All of you, kiss

Zrinski Zrinski () was a Croatian- Hungarian noble family, a cadet branch of the Croatian noble tribe of Šubić, influential during the period in history marked by the Ottoman wars in Europe in the Kingdom of Croatia's union with the Kingdom of Hungar ...

Follow him to the gates, You, faithful heroes! Now, brothers! Load the rifles, pistols, Our thunders, our bang, Let them roar, topple, harry! Let us grind our fierce swords, Make them cut harder, harder! Good bye and be well, Our home, forever now, Oh, farewell, From everywhere around us Cruel enemy is upon you Already they plan To bury your sacred body, But they won't! All your sons move to fight for you! Our home, you will stand forever! To battle! To battle! For our home, for our home now to battle! Even as infernal host Raises its blade at it; Come to battle! We are few, but fearless! Who will crush him? Death to the devil, death! To die for your homeland is such delight! Against our foe! He must, he must fall!

Notes

External links

* * , in the Kokugikan Hall in Tokyo on February 26, 2006 * , Opera Narodnog pozorišta (National Opera Theatre), {{ill, Tomislav Fačini, hr conducting, Sarajevo 2006
"U boj, u boj"
in-depth article by Darko Žubrinić (2005, in English) Croatian patriotic songs 1866 songs Opera excerpts