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http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/marseill.html
La Marseillaise, the French national anthem, was composed in one night during the French Revolution (April 24, 1792) by Claude-Joseph Rouget de Lisle, a captain of the engineers and amateur musician stationed in Strasbourg in 1792. It was played at a patriotic banquet at Marseilles, and printed copies were given to the revolutionary forces then marching on Paris. They entered Paris singing this song, and to it they marched to the Tuileries on August 10th.
Ironically, Rouget de Lisle was himself a royalist and refused to take the oath of allegiance to the new constitution. He was imprisoned and barely escaped the guillotine.. Originally entitled Chant de guerre de l'armeé du Rhin (War Song of the Army of the Rhine), the anthem became called La Marseillaise because of its popularity with volunteer army units from Marseilles.
The Convention accepted it as the French national anthem in a decree passed July 14, 1795. La Marseillaise was banned by Napoleon during the Empire, and by Louis XVIII on the Second Restoration (1815), because of its revolutionary associations. Authorized after the July Revolution of 1830, it was again banned by Napoleon III and not reinstated until 1879.
The text here consists of only the first two verses [out of seven].
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Allons enfants de la Patrie |
Let us go, children of the fatherland |
Aux armes citoyens! |
To arms, citizens! |
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Amour sacré de la Patrie, |
Sacred love of the fatherland |
Aux armes citoyens! |
To arms, citizens! |
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© Paul Halsall Aug 1997
History from the Elysée Website
http://www.elysee.fr/ang/instit/sy1_.htm
Following the French declaration of war on Austria in 1792, Rouget de Lisle, a French officer stationed in Strasbourg, composed the "Battle Song of the Army of the Rhine" during the night of April 25-26, in the home of citizen Dietrich, the Mayor of the city.
The song was taken up by the fédérés (volunteers) from Marseilles who took part in the Tuileries insurrection on August 10, 1792. It proved so successful it was declared a national song on July 14, 1795.
Banned under the Empire and the Restoration, La Marseillaise was reinstated by the July Revolution of 1830, and Hector Berlioz orchestrated the music, dedicating his composition to Rouget de Lisle.
The Third Republic (1879) established it as the French national anthem, and in 1887 an "official version" was adopted by the Ministry of War following the recommendation of a specially-appointed commission.
Also under the Third Republic, the ashes of Rouget de Lisle were transferred to Les Invalides (on July 14, 1915).
In September 1944, a circular issued by the Ministry of Education called for La Marseillaise to be sung in schools in order "to celebrate our liberation and our martyrs."
Its status as the national anthem was reaffirmed in the 1946 and 1958 Constitutions (article 2).
Note: there are a couple of discrepancies between the words at the Elysee site and those at the Modern History site. Can you find them?
You may hear a version of the anthem over the Internet at the Modern History site. We recommend you try to hear the full orchestra version by Michel Sardou that we use in class.
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