I know you have probably read it before but I find myslef rather like Father Jack Hackett, whenever I hear the French national anthem I want to stand up and say to everyone.. GET UP, GET UP!
For a bloody thirsty and highly entertaining read, have a look at this and tell me seriously if you have ever seen/heard anything to top it.. It is like 18th century Motorhead meets Slipknot meets Iron Maiden..

no wonder there was a Napoleonic War if the French were feeling this unhappy and looking to kill some Kings!!!!!! Try humming along when you read, really funny....

Arise children of the fatherland
The day of glory has arrived
Against us tyranny's
Bloody standard is raised
Listen to the sound in the fields
The howling of these fearsome soldiers
They are coming into our midst
To cut the throats of your sons and consorts

To arms citizens Form your battalions
March, march
Let impure blood
Water our furrows

What do they want this horde of slaves
Of traitors and conspiratorial kings?
For whom these vile chains
These long-prepared irons?
Frenchmen, for us, ah! What outrage
What methods must be taken?
It is us they dare plan
To return to the old slavery!

What! These foreign cohorts!
They would make laws in our courts!
What! These mercenary phalanxes
Would cut down our warrior sons
Good Lord! By chained hands
Our brow would yield under the yoke
The vile despots would have themselves be
The masters of destiny

Tremble, tyrants and traitors
The shame of all good men
Tremble! Your parricidal schemes
Will receive their just reward
Against you we are all soldiers
If they fall, our young heros
France will bear new ones
Ready to join the fight against you

Frenchmen, as magnanimous warriors
Bear or hold back your blows
Spare these sad victims
That they regret taking up arms against us
But not these bloody despots
These accomplices of Bouillé
All these tigers who pitilessly
Ripped out their mothers' wombs

We too shall enlist
When our elders' time has come
To add to the list of deeds
Inscribed upon their tombs
We are much less jealous of surviving them
Than of sharing their coffins
We shall have the sublime pride
Of avenging or joining them

Drive on sacred patriotism
Support our avenging arms
Liberty, cherished liberty
Join the struggle with your defenders
Under our flags, let victory
Hurry to your manly tone
So that in death your enemies
See your triumph and our glory!


I mean, how do you top that with..

God save our....

Oh say can you see....

By far the greatest national anthem in the world! No fawning or forelock tugging for the French, it's fantastic stuff.

Ooh I don't know, there's always

Lord, grant that Marshal Wade,
May by thy mighty aid,
Victory bring.
May he sedition hush,
and like a torrent rush,
Rebellious Scots to crush,
God save the King.

and,

From France and Pretender
Great Britain defend her,
Foes let them fall;
From foreign slavery,
Priests and their knavery,
And Popish Reverie,
God save us all.

Yes I guess there is that Ben!

But you see, we rebellious Scots are pretty difficult to keep down... we just keep getting back up!

I like Ankh-Morpork's Anthem:

"When dragons belch and hippos flee
My thoughts, Ankh-Morpork, are of thee
Let others boast of martial dash
For we have boldly fought with cash
We own all your helmets, we own all your shoes.
We own all your generals - touch us and you'll lose.
Morporkia! Morporkia!
Morporkia owns the day!
We can rule you wholesale
Touch us and you'll pay.

We bankrupt all invaders,
We sell them souvenirs,
We ner ner ner ner ner ner by the ears,
Er ner ner ner ner ner ner ner ner ner,
Ner ner ner ner ner ner, ner ner ner ner ner,
Ner your gleaming swords, we mortgaged to the hilt.
Morporkia! Morporkia!
Ner ner ner ner ner ner ner ner ner ner ner ner ner ner ner ner
We can rule you wholesale
Credit where it's due."

The second verse is the most accurate, actually being written to cater for those who never can sing the second verse of any anthem.

Jim

Marseillaise = Best National Anthem - ever!

And I say that as a still proud ex-pat Brit. "God Save the Queen" has to be one of the most turgid dirges ever composed (How Eliz must hate having to listen to it all the time...) Should have been changed to "Hope and Glory" or "Rule Britannia" decades ago!

Every time my half French wife watches that scene in Casablanca when the French out-sing the Germans singing their respective national anthems in Rick’s Bar - she bursts into tears!

It’s potent stuff the Marseillaise and it doesn’t take any prisoners – not even the chap who inspired it. It was composed in honour of French Revolutionary general Marshal Nicholas Luckner, but later on he didn’t come up to scratch – so they guillotined him!

Now tell me that you can listen to the Welsh national anthem and not cry........

Well people here cry when I sing it

most national anthems are a bit rubbish & the English one a praise song to a coward who would have bottled out and run off back the Palatinate if the rabble of Scots had made it to Leicester & not bottled out at Derby themselves, is particularly a fine example of this pathetic genre.

I like Jerusalem, Flower of Scotland and Men of Harlech much better & think they should have replaced aforesaid rubbish long since.

Ginger

As a Scot I must admit to disliking Flower of Scotland as a bit of a dirge. Nice folk song to sing or listen to in a pub by a log fire but too full of wistful pathos and melancholy. Can't think of anything suitable really.. Scotland the Brave.. too twee... maybe Caledonia by Frankie Miller! Always made me sentimental when I saw it used in the beer advert about the Scot who wantred to move back from London! Eoither that or something by NAZARETH!!!!
Have been listening to Elgar in the car... England could do worse than Land of Hope and Glory... high Empire Victorian sentiments.... very good.
I like the Welsh anthem.. yes Kerry, it is emotional but men of Harlech is good to.

Still, in the nationl anthem league table I wish I was French!

Hello Barry

In 1789 people of France made a revolution, a real one (not a tax refusing and will of independance as americans did), with human rights declaration with equals rights and dignity for all men, ending the privileges of a happy few, members of aristocracy and catholic church.
It was a real danger for all European powers, based on aristocracy and privileges, they reacted violently, the Duke of Brunswick threatening to kill all French revolutionary people.
The threatening Brunswick declaration provoked a surge, French people wanted to defend and fight against professional foreign armies to preserve liberty and equality, the “marseillaise” song was created in this context.
It wasn t a declaration of war and violence, it was a reaction of defense against foreign invasion.
Britain was the first enemy, because it was a good opportunity to lower the power of her old enemy , France, and because Britain was afraid that the revolutionary ideas could contaminate her own lower and poorer social classes.
It was the Napoleonic wars origins, Britain could not tolerate a French revolutionary state, the war would end with it.
Britain will pay during twenty years the other Europeans dynastic powers for make war to France.
Napoleon wanted his “dynasty” be recognized like the king s ones, it was impossible, an illusion.
Dear Barry, I think your French History knowledge is somewhat biaised, not surprising for a british man.
Wellington said “we have been , we are and I hope we will allways be hated in France”
As you did with Marseillaise song, I ll say “We have been, we are, and I hope we will always be hated in Britain”
Cheers.

Davidsharpe

Dear David

I think you have misunderstood. Barry was not insulting the Marseillaise (or the French!)

Barry (and I) were saying how great we think the Marseillaise is. It is a wonderful, stirring piece of music. We were just having a light hearted joke about the words. Even as a proud Frenchman surely you can see the words to your national anthem contain a lot of dramatic, but - in this modern age - surprisingly violent imagery? (Qu'un sang impur Abreuve nos sillons! ) The French national anthem is quite unusual in this. The words of just about every other country's national anthem are very boring in comparison. (Including the British one... )

I for one (I'm sure Barry can defend himself!) am sorry that you seem to be a little insulted by this discussion. I don't think any offence was intended. I like the French. One of the things I really miss about living in Australia now is France! My late father-in-law (a lovely man) was born and grew up in Marseille. But I reserve the right to joke about the words of anyone's national anthem - including my own!

Now, if you want to have a civilised debate about "historical bias" I am sure we can oblige. For example - your assertion that the French Revolution "wasn't a declaration of war and violence". Really? What about The Terror? The guillotine? Violence was at the heart of the French Revolution - as it is with many other revolutions

Yours sincerely
DPT
(John)

Hello John

I agree with you, John, violence is one of the worse consequences of revolutions, and french one was particularly violent (20 000 french beheaded by guillotine !)
The terror wasn t only by the revolutionaries, the counter revolutionaries killed more than 20 000 in french provinces, but the "guillotine" struck the imagination and mask the other side of terror.

I wasn t insulted, i m not fond of the words of the "Marseillaise" which are too bloody for modern world, even if we consider the symbolic national reoprésentation, but i wanted to say to Barry that these words were written in a dramatic period where french people was directly threatened of being slaughtered by the other european powers, wanting to eradicate the revolutionary ideas.
Often, british people think about french revolution as the evil, the agressor, it was the contrary, the french revolution was attacked, in danger of destruction, and the europeans dynasty powers, the agressors .
This time will come, at Waterloo, marking the end of the time of revolution in France with the return of the bourbons (the french king dynasty).

I quote the famous words of Wellington, which are very agressive (in an ironic way) against France and return them aigainst britain to show you how it could be negative to receive them, but they were said in a context of 20 years of difficult wars.
Wellington was the product of the british aristocratic class, he despises the lower class ("the scum of the earth") and particularly the french who had the folly to pretend be the equals of aristocratic people.

Napoleon was a dictator, but promotion, in the army, was open to lower classes, that s why so many good commanders and officers were promoted and make the French army one of the best of the early 19th century.
There wasn t corporal punishment in french army (only occasionaly) , and so many (crual ones) in british army and navy, because these ones were divided between officers from Higher classes and the "scum of the earth" needing to be kept in harsh discipline by fear.

Cheers

David

I always thought that the French Republic declared war against Austria and Prussia (1792) and against the Dutch Republic and Great Britain in 1793 and against other countries.