Marines' Hymn
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The "Marines' Hymn" is the official
hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' d ...
of the
United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...
, introduced by the first director of the USMC Band, Francesco Maria Scala. Its music originates from an 1867 work by
Jacques Offenbach Jacques Offenbach (; 20 June 18195 October 1880) was a German-born French composer, cellist and impresario. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s to the 1870s, and his uncompleted opera ''The Tales of Hoffmann''. He was a p ...
with the lyrics added by an anonymous author at an unknown time in the following years. Authorized by the Commandant of the Marine Corps in 1929, it is the oldest official song in the
United States Armed Forces The United States Armed Forces are the Military, military forces of the United States. U.S. United States Code, federal law names six armed forces: the United States Army, Army, United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps, United States Navy, Na ...
. The "Marines' Hymn" is typically sung at the position of
attention Attention or focus, is the concentration of awareness on some phenomenon to the exclusion of other stimuli. It is the selective concentration on discrete information, either subjectively or objectively. William James (1890) wrote that "Atte ...
as a gesture of respect, akin to a
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 European ...
. However, the third verse is also used as a toast during formal events, such as the birthday ball and other ceremonies.


History

The line "To the shores of Tripoli" refers to the
First Barbary War The First Barbary War (1801–1805), also known as the Tripolitan War and the Barbary Coast War, was a conflict during the 1801–1815 Barbary Wars, in which the United States fought against Ottoman Tripolitania. Tripolitania had declared war ...
, and specifically the
Battle of Derna 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 c ...
in 1805. "The Halls of Montezuma" refers to the
Battle of Chapultepec The Battle of Chapultepec took place between U.S. troops and Mexican forces holding the strategically located Chapultepec Castle on the outskirts of Mexico City on the 13th of September, 1847 during the Mexican–American War. The castle was buil ...
on 12/13 September 1847 during the
Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...
, where a force of Marines stormed
Chapultepec Castle Chapultepec Castle () is located on top of Chapultepec Hill in Mexico City's Chapultepec park. The name ''Chapultepec'' is the Nahuatl word which means "on the hill of the grasshopper". It is located at the entrance to Chapultepec park, at a he ...
. Strictly, the usage "Halls of Montezuma" is poetic license, as the building which the Marines stormed had been erected by the Spanish rulers of Mexico, more than two centuries after the Aztec Emperor Montezuma was overthrown. At the time of the assault, the fort was actually the newly founded Mexican Military Academy. Prior to Mexican independence one of the Spanish viceroys had built a personal residence on the hill (1786). However, in Aztec times Chapultepec Hill and its hot springs were a royal spa. Marine Corps tradition maintains that the red stripe worn on the dress-blues trousers of officers and noncommissioned officers, and commonly known as the blood stripe, commemorates the high number of Marine NCOs and officers killed storming the castle of Chapultepec in September 1847. As noted, The music is from the "Gendarmes' Duet" (or the "bold gendarmes") from the revision in 1867 of the
Jacques Offenbach Jacques Offenbach (; 20 June 18195 October 1880) was a German-born French composer, cellist and impresario. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s to the 1870s, and his uncompleted opera ''The Tales of Hoffmann''. He was a p ...
opera ''
Geneviève de Brabant ''Geneviève de Brabant'' () is an opéra bouffe, or operetta, by Jacques Offenbach, first performed in Paris in 1859. The plot is based on the medieval legend of Genevieve of Brabant. For the 1867 version two additional characters, men-at-ar ...
'', which debuted in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
in 1859. Correspondence between Colonel Albert S. McLemore and Walter F. Smith (the second leader of the
United States Marine Band The United States Marine Band is the premier band of the United States Marine Corps. Established by act of Congress on July 11, 1798, it is the oldest of the United States military bands and the oldest professional musical organization in the ...
) traces the tune: The name of the opera and a part of the chorus was secured from Wallach and forwarded to Smith, who replied:
John Philip Sousa John Philip Sousa ( , ; November 6, 1854 â€“ March 6, 1932) was an American composer and conductor of the late Romantic music, Romantic era known primarily for American military March (music), marches. He is known as "The March King" or th ...
once wrote: Today, the preferred version officially performed by the U.S. Marine Band is a 1915 arrangement by Edward M. Van Loock, a member of the Marine Band at the time. Another later arrangement from the 1950s by Donald R. Hunsberger is also accepted for official performances. The lyrics are also contained in the book ''Rhymes of the Rookies'' published in 1917. The author of these poems was W. E. Christian. The book is available online in several formats. It consists of a series of poems regarding military life prior to World War I. Some websites, including the official USMC website, claim that the U.S. Marine Corps secured a
copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive legal 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, ...
on the song either 19 August 1891 or 18 August 1919. U.S. Copyright Law prohibits copyrighting "any work of the United States Government", including subordinate agencies such as the Marine Corps, but allows them to hold "copyrights transferred to it by assignment, bequest, or otherwise". The
Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...
asserts that the song was originally copyrighted in 1919 by ''
The Leatherneck ''The Leatherneck'' is a 1929 American sound part-talkie drama film directed by Howard Higgin. In addition to sequences with audible dialogue or talking sequences, the film features a synchronized musical score and sound effects along with Eng ...
'', which was started by off-duty US Marines in 1917 using a donation from the YMCA, and therefore might not be considered a "work of the United States Government". (It does not state whether Leatherneck's copyright was ever transferred to the Marine Corps.) In addition, several composers do hold copyrights on different arrangements of the song. These copyrights cover only the specific arrangements and not the song as a whole. In 1929 the
commandant of the Marine Corps Commandant of the Marine Corps may refer to: * Commandant of the Marine Corps (Indonesia) * Commandant of the Netherlands Marine Corps * Commandant of the Philippine Marine Corps * Commandant of the Republic of Korea Marine Corps * Commandant of th ...
authorized the three verses of the Marines' Hymn as the official version, but changed the fifth through eighth lines: This older version can be heard in the 1951 film '' Halls of Montezuma''. On 21 November 1942, Commandant
Thomas Holcomb General (United States), General Thomas Holcomb (August 5, 1879 – May 24, 1965) was a United States Marine Corps officer who served as the seventeenth Commandant of the United States Marine Corps, Commandant of the Marine Corps from 1936 to 19 ...
approved a change in the words of the first verse's fourth line from "On the land as on the sea" to "In the air, on land, and sea" to reflect the addition of
aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as h ...
to the Corps' arsenal.
Western Illinois University Western Illinois University (WIU) is a public university in Macomb, Illinois, United States. It was founded in 1899 as Western Illinois State Normal School. As the normal school grew, it became Western Illinois State Teachers College. Once West ...
uses the hymn prior to all football games. They are the only nonmilitary academy allowed to use the hymn. The university has had permission to use the official nickname, mascot, and hymn of the Corps since 1927.


Lyrics

From the Halls of Montezuma To the shores of Tripoli; We fight our country's battles In the air, on land, and sea; First to fight for right and freedom And to keep our honor clean; We are proud to claim the title Of United States Marine. Our flag's unfurled to every breeze From dawn to setting sun; We have fought in ev'ry clime and place Where we could take a gun; In the snow of far-off Northern lands And in sunny tropic scenes; You will find us always on the job The United States Marines. Here's health to you and to our Corps Which we are proud to serve; In many a strife we've fought for life And never lost our nerve; If the
Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...
and the
Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...
Ever look on Heaven's scenes; They will find the streets are guarded By United States Marines.


Extra verses

Various people over the years have written unofficial or semi-official extra verses to commemorate later battles and actions. For example, after U.S. military forces occupied Iceland in 1941 to guard it against possible occupation by
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...
, this verse was written: Again in nineteen forty-one, we sailed a north'ard course
And found beneath the
midnight sun Midnight sun, also known as polar day, is a natural phenomenon that occurs in the summer months in places north of the Arctic Circle or south of the Antarctic Circle, when the Sun remains visible at the local midnight. When midnight sun is see ...
, the
Viking Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9â ...
and the Norse.
The Iceland girls were slim and fair, and fair the Iceland scenes,
And the Army found in landing there, the United States Marines.


See also

*" The Song of the Marines" * ''Halls of Montezuma'' (film) *'' To the Shores of Tripoli'' * "The U.S. Air Force" (song) *" Anchors Aweigh" *" The Army Goes Rolling Along" * Semper Paratus (march) * Semper Supra (march) *Sporting clubs that use the tune for their respective club songs: **
Australian Football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an Australian rules football playing field, oval field, often a modified ...
***
Adelaide Football Club The Adelaide Football Club, nicknamed the Crows, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Adelaide, South Australia that was founded in 1990. The Crows have fielded a men's team in the Australian Football League (AFL) since 199 ...
– "The Pride of South Australia" ***
Perth Football Club The Perth Football Club, nicknamed the Demons, is an Australian rules football club based in Lathlain, Western Australia, Lathlain, Western Australia, currently playing in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and WAFL Women's (WAFLW). R ...
*** Werribee Football Club **
Rugby League Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...
***
Melbourne Storm The Melbourne Storm is a rugby league football club based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia that participates in the National Rugby League (NRL). The club plays its home games at AAMI Park, and wears a purple and navy blu ...
– "We are the Mighty Melbourne storm" ***Cantebury Bulldogs


Notes


References


Bibliography

*


Further reading

*Collins, Ace. ''Songs Sung, Red, White, and Blue: The Stories Behind America's Best-Loved Patriotic Songs''. HarperResource, 2003. *London, Joshua E
''Victory in Tripoli: How America's War with the Barbary Pirates Established the U.S. Navy and Shaped a Nation''
New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2005.


External links



performed as instrumental band march (.wav file)
Marine's Hymn Lyrics
Information about the USMC hymn as well as other USMC history.
The Marine's Hymn Mystery
More information about the musical authorship of the tune.
Rhymes of the Rookies: Sunny Side of Soldier Service by W. E. Christian
Project Gutenberg eBook containing original poem. {{Authority control American military marches American patriotic songs Anthems of organizations Marine Hymn Patriotic hymns United States Marine Corps lore and symbols Works about the United States Marine Corps Concert band pieces