"Malbrough s'en va-t-en guerre" (Marlborough is going off to war), also known as "Mort et convoi de l'invincible Malbrough" (The death and burial of the invincible Marlborough), is a

folk song Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be ca ...

in French.

History

The burlesque lament on the death of

John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough General (United Kingdom), General John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, 1st Prince of Mindelheim, 1st Count of Nellenburg, Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, (26 May 1650 – 16 June 1722 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.) was a Briti ...

(1650–1722) was written on a false rumour of that event after the

Battle of Malplaquet The Battle of Malplaquet took place on 11 September 1709 during the War of the Spanish Succession, near Taisnières-sur-Hon in modern France, then part of the Spanish Netherlands. A French army of around 75,000 men, commanded by the Duke of V ...

in 1709, the bloodiest battle of the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict fought between 1701 and 1714. The immediate cause was the death of the childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700, which led to a struggle for control of the Spanish E ...

. It tells how Marlborough's wife, awaiting his return from battle, is given the news of her husband's death. It also tells that he was buried and that a nightingale sang over his grave. For years it was only known traditionally, and does not appear among the many anecdotic songs printed in France during the middle of the 18th century.

Pierre Beaumarchais Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais (; 24 January 1732 – 18 May 1799) was a French playwright and diplomat during the Age of Enlightenment. Best known for his three #Figaro plays, Figaro plays, at various times in his life he was also a watc ...

used the tune in his 1778 play ''

The Marriage of Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' (, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premiered at the Burgtheater in Vienn ...

'' for a despairing love song for Cherubino. In 1780 it became very popular. For instance, the tune concludes a

sonata In music a sonata (; pl. ''sonate'') literally means a piece ''played'' as opposed to a cantata (Latin and Italian ''cantare'', "to sing"), a piece ''sung''. The term evolved through the history of music, designating a variety of forms until th ...

(in D-major) for

viola d'amore The viola d'amore (; ) is a 7- or 6- stringed musical instrument with additional sympathetic strings used chiefly in the baroque period. It is played under the chin in the same manner as the violin. Structure and sound The viola d'amore shar ...

and

viola The viola ( , () ) is a string instrument of the violin family, and is usually bowed when played. Violas are slightly larger than violins, and have a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of the ...

composed by

Carl Stamitz Carl Philipp Stamitz (; baptized 8 May 17459 November 1801) was a German composer of partial Czech ancestry. He was the most prominent representative of the second generation of the Mannheim School. He was the eldest son of Johann Stamitz, a vio ...

in 1780 while in Paris. And it happened that when Prince Louis-Charles was born in 1785 (son of

Louis XVI Louis XVI (Louis-Auguste; ; 23 August 1754 – 21 January 1793) was the last king of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. The son of Louis, Dauphin of France (1729–1765), Louis, Dauphin of France (son and heir- ...

and

Marie Antoinette Marie Antoinette (; ; Maria Antonia Josefa Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last List of French royal consorts, queen of France before the French Revolution and the establishment of the French First Republic. She was the ...

and heir to the French throne) he was wet-nursed by a peasant named

Geneviève Poitrine Geneviève Poitrine, known as Madame Poitrine ( – after 1783), was a wet nurse of the Dauphin of France, Louis Joseph, son of King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette. Poitrine was retrospectively accused of transmitting tuberculosis to the i ...

. The nurse, whilst rocking the royal cradle, sang "Marlborough s'en va-t-en guerre". The name, the simplicity of the words, and the melodiousness of the tune, interested the queen, and she frequently sang it. Everybody repeated it after her, including the king. The song was sung in the state apartments of

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...

, in the kitchens and in the stables – it became immensely popular. From the court it was adopted by the tradespeople of Paris, and it passed from town to town, and country to country. It became as popular in England as in France.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang (von) Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German polymath who is widely regarded as the most influential writer in the German language. His work has had a wide-ranging influence on Western literature, literary, Polit ...

came to hate Marlborough simply on account of the prevalence of the tune he encountered during travels in France. It also became popular in Spain due to the Bourbon dynasty's influence on Spanish nobility. There the name Marlborough was modified to an easier to pronounce Mambrú. It was sung by children while playing Rayuela (

Hopscotch Hopscotch is a playground game in which players toss a small object, called a lagger, into numbered triangles or a pattern of rectangles outlined on the ground and then hop or jump through the spaces and retrieve the object. It is a children's ...

Jacinto Valledor Jacinto Valledor y la Calle (Madrid, 1744- Cuenca, 1809) was a Spanish composer of theatre music and tonadillas. Early success in Barcelona in the 1780s turned to difficulties after a move to Madrid where he was in the shadow of Pablo Esteve Pablo ...

tonadilla Tonadilla was a Spanish musical song form of theatrical origin; not danced. The genre was a type of short, satirical musical comedy popular in 18th-century Spain, and later in Cuba and other Spanish colonial countries. It originated as a song typ ...

"La cantada vida y muerte del general Malbrú" concludes with the tune, and the Spanish guitarist and composer

Fernando Sor Fernando Sor (baptised 14 February 1778 – 10 July 1839) was a Spanish classical guitarist and composer of the Classical period (music), late Classical era and Romantic music, early Romantic era. Best known for writing solo classical guitar mu ...

(1778–1839) created a series of variations for guitar on the theme. It then spread to Latin America. The rage endured for many years, slowly fading after the French Revolution, although, it is said that

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

liked to hum the tune, for instance when crossing the Memel (June 1812) at the beginning of his fatal

Russian campaign The French invasion of Russia, also known as the Russian campaign (), the Second Polish War, and in Russia as the Patriotic War of 1812 (), was initiated by Napoleon with the aim of compelling the Russian Empire to comply with the continent ...

. The melody also became widely popular in the United Kingdom. By the mid-19th century it was being sung with the words "

For He's a Jolly Good Fellow "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow" is a popular song that is sung to congratulate a person on a significant event, such as a promotion (rank), promotion, a birthday, a wedding (or playing a major part in a wedding), a retirement, a wedding anniversar ...

", often at all-male social gatherings. By 1862, these lyrics were already familiar in America. From this version, the melody also became the tune for a popular American campfire tune " The Bear Went Over the Mountain". The song has been translated into several languages, including an English version published by the American poet

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include the poems " Paul Revere's Ride", '' The Song of Hiawatha'', and '' Evangeline''. He was the first American to comp ...

in the 19th century.

Melody

\relative g' \addlyrics

Verses

Malbrough s'en va-t-en guerre, mironton, mironton, mirontaine, Malbrough s'en va-t-en guerre, Ne sait quand reviendra. Il reviendra-z-à Pâques, mironton, mironton, mirontaine, Il reviendra-z-à Pâques, ou à la Trinité. La Trinité se passe, mironton, mironton, mirontaine, la Trinité se passe, Malbrough ne revient pas. Madame à sa tour monte, mironton, mironton, mirontaine, Madame à sa tour monte si haut qu'elle peut monter. Elle voit venir son page, mironton, mironton, mirontaine, elle voit venir son page, tout de noir habillé. Beau page, mon beau page, mironton, mironton, mirontaine, beau page, mon beau page, quelles nouvelles apportez? Aux nouvelles que j'apporte, mironton, mironton, mirontaine, aux nouvelles que j'apporte, vos beaux yeux vont pleurer! Quittez vos habits roses, mironton, mironton, mirontaine, quittez vos habits roses, et vos satins brodés! Monsieur Malbrough est mort. mironton, mironton, mirontaine, Monsieur Malbrough est mort. Est mort et enterré. Je l'ai vu porter en terre, mironton, mironton, mirontaine, Je l'ai vu porter en terre, par quatre-z-officiers. L'un portait sa cuirasse mironton, mironton, mirontaine, l'un portait sa cuirasse l'autre son bouclier. L'autre portait son grand sabre, mironton, mironton, mirontaine, L'autre portait son grand sabre, et l'autre ne portait rien. On planta sur sa tombe mironton, mironton, mirontaine, on planta sur sa tombe un beau rosier fleuri. La cérémonie faite, mironton, mironton,c mirontaine, la cérémonie faite chacun s'en fut coucher. Alors autour de sa tombe Mironton, mironton, mirontaine Alors autour de sa tombe Romarins l'on planta. Sur la plus haute branche Un rossignol chanta On vit voler son âme, Au travers des lauriers. Chacun mit ventre à terre, Mironton, mironton, mirontaine Chacun mit ventre à terre, Et puis se releva. Marlborough the Prince of Commanders Is gone to war in

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

, His fame is like

Alexander Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here ar ...

's, But when will he ever come home? Mironton, mironton, mirontaine. Perhaps at Trinity Feast, or Perhaps he may come at Easter, Egad! he had better make haste or We fear he may never come home. Mironton etc. For Trinity Feast is over, And has brought no news from Dover, And Easter is pass'd moreover, And Marlborough still delays. Milady in her watch-tower Spends many a pensive hour, Not knowing why or how her Dear lord from England stays. While sitting quite forlorn in That tower, she spies returning A page clad in deep mourning, With fainting steps and slow. "O page, prithee come faster! What news do you bring of your master? I fear there is some disaster, Your looks are so full of woe." "The news I bring fair lady," With sorrowful accent said he, "Is one you are not ready So soon, alas! to hear. "But since to speak I'm hurried," Added this page, quite flurried, "Marlborough is dead and buried!" And here he shed a tear. "He's dead! He's dead as a herring! For I beheld his berring, And four officers transferring His corpse away from the field. "One officer carried his sabre, And he carried it not without labour, Much envying his next neighbour, Who only bore a shield. "The third was helmet bearer – That helmet which in its wearer Fill'd all who saw it with terror, And cover'd a hero's brains. "Now, having got so far, I Find that – by the Lord Harry! The fourth is left nothing to carry. So there the thing remains." Mironton, mironton, mirontaine.

In popular culture

The song is one of several contemporary tunes that are played by the musical box of the Negress head clock, made in Paris in 1784.

Rita Dove Rita Frances Dove (born August 28, 1952) is an American poet and essayist. From 1993 to 1995, she served as United States Poet Laureate, Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress. She is the first African American to have bee ...

references the song and the clock in her 2009 poem "Ode on a Negress Head Clock, with Eight Tunes".

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

used the tune to represent the French in his musical work '' Wellington's Victory''.

Footnotes

External links

"Mort et convoi de l'invincible Malbrough"
score

Original French song and its English version

''Air Malbrough''
mis en variations pour clavecin ou pianoforte par

Pierre-Louis Couperin Pierre-Louis Couperin (14 March 1755 – 10 October 1789) was a French organist and composer, a member of the famous Couperin dynasty of composer-organists. Life Like his brother Gervais-François, Pierre-Louis Couperin studied with his fath ...