The "Jäger March" (, originally "Jääkärien marssi"), , is a military march by

Jean Sibelius Jean Sibelius (; ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius; 8 December 186520 September 1957) was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic music, Romantic and 20th-century classical music, early modern periods. He is widely regarded as his countr ...

. He set in 1917 words written by the Finnish Jäger, ''Hilfsgruppenführer'' Heikki Nurmio who served in Libau, in the Royal Prussian 27th Jäger Battalion of the

Imperial German Army The Imperial German Army (1871–1919), officially referred to as the German Army (), was the unified ground and air force of the German Empire. It was established in 1871 with the political unification of Germany under the leadership of Kingdom o ...

. This unit was fighting against the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

, of which the

Grand Duchy of Finland The Grand Duchy of Finland was the predecessor state of modern Finland. It existed from 1809 to 1917 as an Autonomous region, autonomous state within the Russian Empire. Originating in the 16th century as a titular grand duchy held by the Monarc ...

still was a part. The words were smuggled into Finland to Sibelius, who composed the song in Järvenpää. Sibelius wrote the "Jäger March" originally for men's chorus and piano, and later arranged it for men's chorus and symphony orchestra. The first public performance of ''Jäger March'' was in

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

on 19 January 1918 by the choir Akademiska sångföreningen, led by Olof Wallin. The

Finnish Civil War The Finnish Civil War was a civil war in Finland in 1918 fought for the leadership and control of the country between Whites (Finland), White Finland and the Finnish Socialist Workers' Republic (Red Finland) during the country's transition fr ...

began on the same day between the White and the Red troops. The march is the honorary march of many army detachments such as the Lapland Military Band from

Rovaniemi Rovaniemi ( , ; ; ; ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Lapland (Finland), Lapland. It is located near the Arctic Circle in the northern interior of the country. The population of Rovaniemi is approximately , while the Rovaniemi su ...

Lyrics

References

External links

*
''Jääkärimarssi''
Lyrics
''Jääkärien marssi''
(sound clip, 28 seconds, 488 kB, MP3) presented by Pohjanmaan Sotilassoittokunta ( Pohjanmaa Military Band) in th
military music homepage
of

Finnish Defence Forces The Finnish Defence Forces (FDF) (; ) are the military of Finland. The Finnish Defence Forces consist of the Finnish Army, the Finnish Navy, and the Finnish Air Force. In wartime, the Finnish Border Guard becomes part of the Finnish Defence For ...

Pushkin Quintett: ''The Jäger March'' — new version (YouTube)

Jäger March on Youtube (Instrumental)

Jäger March on Youtube (With vocals)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jager March Choral compositions by Jean Sibelius Finnish military marches 1917 compositions