The British National Anthem

The British national anthem was the first in the world to be adopted as such, with every other country in the world subsequently following suit, sometimes even using the same tune. Like many British institutions it was a matter of evolution rather than deliberate creation, coming about almost by accident.

  

The historical background

It was first heard in anything like its current form in September 1745 at Drury Lane Theatre in London, where it was enthusiastically received and encored several times. Its use then spread to other theatres and was soon used on occasions when the King was present or some expression of patriotism was called for.

These were troublesome times. The British monarchy, under King George II, was threatened by an uprising led by “Bonnie Prince Charlie”, the grandson of King James II who had been deposed in 1688. Although King George was not universally popular and was himself a foreigner in the eyes of most of his British subjects, the prospect of a revolution led by a Catholic prince was even less welcome, and the English (as opposed to the Scottish) people were keen to rally behind their Hanoverian king.

At the time of the first performance of “God Save the King”, Charles Edward Stuart’s army of Highlanders had reached Edinburgh and was gathering support as it prepared to venture south into England. It was to advance as far as Derby, in the English Midlands, by early December, but then turned back when the “Young Pretender’s” supporters got cold feet.

The patriotic song was therefore written at a time of great national distress, with its words focussed on the person of the King who stood in opposition to the threat from the North. The author of the words is unknown, as is the composer of the tune, although it is possible that Dr Thomas Arne arranged it for its original performance. Neither the words nor the music were completely original, and there is evidence that versions of both were in use long before 1745. One ironic possibility, given its use in 1745, is that the tune was based on an old Scottish carol.

The text

The original first verse was as follows:

God save our noble King!

God save Great George our King!

God save the King!

Send him victorious,

Happy and glorious,

Long to reign over us,

God save the King.

(The first two lines have since been changed to meet later circumstances, to:

           

God save our gracious King/Queen

            Long live our noble King/Queen)

Some of the words, including “God save the King” and “long to reign over us” can be traced back to common use in the 16^th century, and versions of the song had also been sung in praise of previous monarchs, including James II. The 1745 version, however, had a specific aim in mind, which was to offer a prayer for the safety of the King, and hence the nation, from a very present threat.

An ironic anthem

It is somewhat ironic that this should have become the national anthem of the whole of Great Britain, which it did from the early 1800s as a matter of general acceptance rather than as the result of any decree or law. The irony lies in the fact that it was written to support one side of what was, in effect, a civil war. Indeed, as new verses were written to supplement the original one, some were so partisan and specific as to be completely unacceptable within a British anthem. For example:

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.

Needless to say, this verse is not used today, even in the fullest version of the anthem, and it was never part of the “official” version. Even so, the anthem is much less popular in the non-English parts of Great Britain, with the Welsh and Scots being content to express their Welshness and Scottishness with their own anthems.

The saving grace of “God Save the Queen” (which it has been since 1952 and was also during the reign of Queen Victoria) as a national anthem for the whole country is that it is a prayer for the safety of the monarch and makes no mention of the country in any of the verses. It can therefore be sung in any part of the country that recognises the Queen as monarch, and that is something that also applies to countries of the British Commonwealth that are independent but still regard the Queen as their figurative head of government.

Some strange features of the National Anthem

As mentioned above, Wales and Scotland have their own anthems, which are used at such events as sporting events between the individual countries of Great Britain, but England as such does not have one, leading to the somewhat bizarre consequence of England teams having to use the national anthem for the whole country when playing other parts of the same country!

It is usual for only one verse of God Save the Queen to be played, but when an extended version is required the third “official” verse is commonly preferred to the second, which includes the lines:

Scatter her enemies

And make them fall.

Confound their politics

Frustrate their knavish tricks

The preferred third verse is much more politically correct:

Thy choicest gifts in store

On her be pleased to pour

Long may she reign.

May she defend our laws

And ever give us cause

To sing with heart and voice,

God Save the Queen.

 The British national anthem is unusual in being neither a paean of praise about the country in question nor, in its current version, a reference to military power, with the sole exception of the line “Send her victorious”. It could be said that it is only a national anthem because the monarch is the titular head of the nation; should the country ever become a republic the national anthem would clearly have to be changed.

It is also of interest that the tune used for God Save the Queen is by no means limited to the United Kingdom. Americans will recognise it as “My Country Tis of Thee” and it is still used for the national anthem of Liechtenstein (Switzerland also used the tune until 1961). On the rare occasions when an English football team plays Liechtenstein, the same tune is played twice!

Another odd feature of this national anthem is that the head of state never sings it. On occasions when the Queen is present everyone will stand to attention (no heart-crossing here!) and sing the anthem, including other members of the royal family, but the Queen herself stays tight-lipped and silent. Given the lyrics, how could she do otherwise?

Whether the citizens of Great Britain and Northern Ireland like it or not, they are probably stuck with God Save the Queen for the foreseeable future, the only likely change being the switch back to “King” when the next monarch takes over.

© John Welford