The Patriotic Song of Russia (In use: 1990-2000)

Russia's first anthem adopted upon independence from the Soviet Union, "Patrioticheskaya pesnya", (The Patriotic Song) was a piece by the national hero of composing, Mikhail Glinka. Glinka's works were also no stranger to consideration as national anthems for Russia, for example during the spring of 1917 when a new national anthem was needed after the last czar abdicated, some people proposed that any work from Glinka's opera "A Life for the Czar" be considered as a new national anthem. This piece may have been intended for that work.

The notes for this piece was found in the papers of Glinka in the late 19th century. Written in the same format as the score for "A Life for the Czar" (known in Soviet times as "Ivan Susanin"), it was suggested it could have been intended for this opera. However, the title that Glinka gave it, "Motif de Chant Nationale" suggests it could have been written as an entry for a national anthem contest, possibly for the national anthem of 1833 (which was around the time that this opera was being written). It has also been pointed out that the tune appears in a 16th century Polish hymn, and thus may not be original to Glinka. The title "The Patriotic Song" was given to it in 1944 when the melody was arranged for the "All-Union Radio Committee of the USSR".

In the spring of 1990, the government of the Russian SFSR (within the USSR) debated what should be the republic's anthem (it was the only one of the Soviet Republics to never adopt a national anthem), and Glinka's melody was unanimously adopted in November of that year, and consequently became the anthem of an independent Russia when independence was proclaimed just over one year later.

There was some complaint among the citizens that there was no lyrics to the anthem, and so there was a competition in late 1999 to compose words for the anthem. The contest was won in November 1999 by Victor Radugin with his poem "Славься, Россия!" "Slav'sya, Rossiya!" (Be glorious, Russia!), but, upon President Yeltsin's resignation at the end of the following month, the words never became official, as the new president favoured the old Soviet melody, which was later adopted.

The stamp above features Mikhail Glinka issued in 1954

The Pakistan National Anthem Composer

Abu-Al-Asar Hafeez Jalandhuri writer, poet and above all composer of the National Anthem of Pakistan. He was born in Jalandhar, Punjab, India on January 14, 1900. After independence of Pakistan in 1947, Hafeez Jullundhri moved to Lahore. Hafeez made up for the lack of formal education with self-study but he has the privilege to have some advise from the great Persian poet Maulana Ghulam Qadir Bilgrami. His dedication, hard work and advise from such a learned person carved his place in poetic pantheon.

Hafeez Jullandhuri actively participated in Pakistan Movement and used his writings to propagate for the cause of Pakistan. In early 1948, he joined the forces for the freedom of Kashmir and got wounded. Hafeez Jalandhari wrote the Kashmiri Anthem, "Watan Hamara Azad Kashmir". He wrote many patriotic songs during Pakistan, India war in 1965.

Hafeez Jullandhuri served as Director General of morals in Pakistan Armed Forces, and very prominent position as adviser to the President, Field Marshal Mohammad Ayub Khan and also Director of Writer's Guild.

Hafeez Jullundhri's monumental work of poetry, Shahnam-e-Islam, gave him incredible fame which, in the manner of Firdowsi's Shahnameh, is a record of the glorious history of Islam in verse. Hafeez Jullandhuri wrote the national anthem of Pakistan composed by S.G.Chhagla. He is unique in Urdu poetry for the enchanting melody of his voice and lilting rhythms of his songs and lyrics. His poetry generally deals with romantic, religious, patriotic and natural themes. He chooses his themes, images and tunes from the subcontinent and his language is a fine blend of Hindi and Urdu diction, reflecting the composite culture of South Asia.

Hafeez was born in Jalandhar, India in a Rajput family. His father was Shams-ud-din who was Hafiz-e-Qur'an. He firstly studied in mosque and then got admission in some local school. He got education up to seventh class. He got no more formal education.

Recently, an Indian poet Jagannath Azad, son of Lahore-based poet Tilok Chand Mahroom, claimed that long before Hafeez Jullundhri’s lyrics were adopted as the national anthem in 1950s, Pakistan had an anthem written by him. He was commissioned by Muhammad Ali Jinnah to write the anthem three days before the creation of Pakistan in 1947. After long debates on this issue in Pakistan, researchers have declined Azad's claim to be the poet of first national anthem of Pakistan. Dr Safdar Mehmood, a famous researcher in Pakistan, has written an article in 'Daily Jang' (6 June 2010), researching this topic a bit further. Based on his research, Dr Mehmood suggests that while there might be a possibility that Azad might have written a national (milli) song which was broadcast by Radio Pakistan after 1947, however, there is no evidence of Azad’s meeting with Jinnah nor of the claim that he wrote a national anthem for Pakistan which was approved by Jinnah and which was broadcast by Radio Pakistan as the new country’s national anthem. In fact, there is no record of the broadcast of Azad's anthem in the official archives of Radio Pakistan. Azad has also claimed that he was awarded 'Iqbal Medal' in 1979 by the Government of Pakistan. Again, this claim is not true as his name is not included in the governmental record of national award holders maintained by the Cabinet Division of Pakistan.

He first married in 1917, when he was seventeen years old. His first wife was his cousin "Zeenat Begum". They altogether had seven children, all of them girls and no boys. In 1939 he married for the second time with a young English woman and had one girl with her. This marriage ended in a divorce. His first wife died in 1954. In 1955 he married with Khurshid Begum. The third relation also gifted him one girl.

In 1922 – 1929 he remained the editor of a few monthly magazines namely, "Nonehal", "Hazar Dastaan", "Teehzeeb-e-Niswan", "Makhzin". His first collection of poems Nagma-e-Zar was published in 1935. After the World War II, he worked as the director of the Song Publicity Department. During this same time he wrote songs that were much liked by the public.

He died on December 21, 1982 at the age of eighty two years. He was buried in Model Town, Lahore but later on his dead body was re-buried in the tomb near Minar-e-Pakistan.

Above is a first day cover with the composer and writer issued on January 14, 2001

The National Banner Song of Taiwan (Alternate Anthem)

Written in the 1930s on mainland China, "The Flag Raising Song" (National Banner Song, National Flag Anthem) isn't per se an anthem of Taiwan at all, but is rather a compromise used by the Taiwanese when represented at international events (such as the Olympic Games) to satisfy concerns from mainland China, as well as being often played during flag raisings. Despite not being the national anthem, it seems to be quite popular in Taiwan, possibly because of the non-political nature of it (as the national anthem was also the party anthem of Kuomintang).

The "National Flag Anthem" (official Republic of China name, also known as the National Banner Song unofficially) of the Republic of China is played during the raising and lowering of the Flag of the Republic of China. This song is also played at international sporting events such as the Olympic Games, where the ROC team plays as "Chinese Taipei." The lyrics were written by Hu Han-min, Tai Chi-tao, Liao Chung-kai and Shao Yuan-chung. The music was composed by Tai Chuan-hsien.

Since 1983, the song was used at Olympic competitions instead of the National Anthem of Taiwan due to pressure from the Chinese Olympic Committee and the International Olympic Committee. This also changed the symbols used by Taiwan during the Olympics and their name officially changed to "Chinese Taipei." During the 2004 Summer Olympics, Chinese Taipei won its first gold medals, and the Banner Song was played at the ceremonial raising of the flag of the gold medal team. When introduced, the song is officially called the "National Anthem of Chinese Taipei." In schools located in Taipei, every morning the National Banner Song and the National Anthem are sung before classes at an outdoor ceremony. During this time, the National Flag is raised.

The stamp above features the composer of the national banner song, Tai Chuan-Hsien issued by China in 1989.

The National Anthem of Serbia

The Serbian anthem was adopted in 1904, after Serbia became an independent nation in the 1880s. Upon forming the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes (later to be called Yugoslavia) in 1918, "Boze Pravde" was retained as the anthem of the Serbs within the federation. In fact, the first anthem of the federation, in use until 1943, uses part of "Boze Pravde" in the melody to represent the Serbs of the land. After World War II, "Boze Pravde" continued to be popular with Serbs, and identified as their anthem. During the Yugoslav civil war in the 1990s, Serbian areas that broke away from Croatia (Krajina) and Bosnia (Srpska) also used "Boze Pravde" upon their creation to identify themselves as a Serbian state. In August, 2004, 18 months after Yugoslavia became the new federation of Serbia and Montenegro, "Boze Pravde" was officially declared as Serbia's anthem by the Serb national assembly and was retained upon the dissolution of the union and Serbian independence in 2006.

The original lyrics, present in the former Yugoslav anthem, refer to the Serbian monarchy, which was replaced with a republican-style government in 1945. The current lyrics of the Serbian anthem replace the references to the king with references to the Serbian race. The lyrics were written by Jorvan Djordjevic, (1826-1900), founder of the Novi Sad Serbian National Theatre and the National Theatre in Belgrade. The music of the anthem is by a Slovene, Davorin Jenko.

The above stamp features the lyricist, Jorvan Djordjevic, issued in 2005 in a sheetlet composed of 8 Theater Personalities.

The National Anthem of West Germany

The first official anthem of West Germany, the "Hymne an Deutschland", remained without acceptance by the public, and therefore President Heuss and Chancellor Konrad Adenauer agreed in May 1952 to re-adopt "Lied der Deutschen" as the West German national anthem. It was declared that only the third verse, beginning with the words "Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit" (Unity and Right and Liberty) should be used at official occasions, due to the many misinterpretations of the first verse, and because of the first verse's mention of former German borders, long lost in subsequent wars. The music was composed by Franz Joseph Haydn and words written by August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben. It was in use until 1990.

The miniature sheet above features Joseph Haydn, issued by Mozambique in 2009, the 100th Anniversary of the composer

The National Anthem of Libya

When Libya became independent in December 1951, it was a kingdom until the overthrow of the monarchy by Moammar Qadaffi in 1969. During the time of the monarchy, the anthem "Libya, Libya, Libya" was used. The composer of the music, Mohamad Abdel Wahab, also wrote the music for the anthems of Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates.

"Allahu Akbar" (God Is Greatest) is not only the title of the present anthem of this Islamic north African state, but also the Muslim call to prayer and a statement of faith. Originally, the text and the melody were written as a battle song of the Egyptian Army during the Suez War in 1956. When Muammar Qadafi transformed Libya into a republic in 1969, he adopted this Egyptian marching song as the Libyan national anthem, as part of his ultimate goal of unity of all Arab nations.

When Qadafi broke off the relations with Egypt after Egypt's peace treaty with Israel in 1979, the anthem was retained, but the Egyptian origin of the song is no longer mentioned by the Libyan authorities. The music was composed by Abdalla Shams El-Din and lyrics written by Mahmoud El-Sherif.

The stamp above features the anthem lyricist issued by Egypt in 2001.

"Salam Al-Bey" (Beylical Salute)

"Salam Al-Bey" (Beylical Salute) was the the anthem of Tunisia in use (1846-1957) before independence from France until the overthrow of the bey a year after independence. The author of the music is debatable. Some historians have said it was composed by famed Italian composer Guiseppe Verdi, while others disagree. The anthem was originally wordless, but lyrics (first Arabic, then French) were written by unknown authors.

Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (9 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian Romantic composer, mainly of opera. He was one of the most influential composers of the 19th century. His works are frequently performed in opera houses throughout the world and, transcending the boundaries of the genre, some of his themes have long since taken root in popular culture - such as "La donna è mobile" from Rigoletto, "Va, pensiero" (The Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves) from Nabucco, "Libiamo ne' lieti calici" (The Drinking Song) from La traviata and the "Grand March" from Aida. Although his work was sometimes criticized for using a generally diatonic rather than a chromatic musical idiom and having a tendency toward melodrama, Verdi’s masterworks dominate the standard repertoire a century and a half after their composition.

Above is a miniature sheet of Verdi, the supposed anthem composer of the Beylical salute issued by St. Tome and Principe in 2001.

Goffredo Mameli on Stamps

Goffredo Mameli (September 5, 1827 - July 6, 1849) was an Italian patriot, poet and writer, and a notable figure in the Italian Risorgimento. He is also the author of the lyrics of the current national anthem of Italy.

The son of an aristocratic Sardinian admiral, Mameli was born in Genoa where his father was in command of the fleet of the kingdom of Sardinia. At the age of seven he was sent to Sardinia, to his grandfather's, to escape the risk of cholera, but soon came back to Genoa to complete his studies.

The achievements of Mameli's very short life are concentrated in only two years, during which time he played major parts in insurrectional movements and the Risorgimento.

In 1847 Mameli joined the Società Entelema, a cultural movement that soon would have turned to a political movement, and here he became interested in the theories of Giuseppe Mazzini. Mameli is mostly known as the author of the lyrics of the Italian national anthem, Il Canto degli Italiani (music by Michele Novaro). These lyrics were used for the first time in November 1847, celebrating King Charles Albert in his visit to Genoa after his first reforms. Mameli's lyrics to a "hymn of the people"— "Suona la tromba"— were set by Giuseppe Verdi the following year.

Mameli was deeply involved in nationalist movements and some more "spectacular" actions are remembered, such as his exposition of the Tricolore (current Italian flag, then prohibited) to celebrate the expulsion of Germans in 1846. Yet, he was with Nino Bixio (Garibaldi's later major supporter and friend) in a committee for public health, already on a clear Mazzinian position. In March 1848, hearing of the insurrection in Milan, Mameli organised an expedition with 300 other patriots, joined Bixio's troops that were already on site, and entered the town. He was then admitted to Garibaldi's irregular army (really the volunteer brigade of general Torres), as a captain, and met Mazzini.

Back in Genoa, he worked more on a literary side, wrote several hymns and other compositions, he became the director of the newspaper Diario del Popolo ("People's Daily"), and promoted a press campaign for a war against Austria. In December 1848 Mameli reached Rome, where Pellegrino Rossi had been murdered, helping in the clandestine works for declaration (February 9, 1849) of the Roman Republic. Mameli then went to Florence where he proposed the creation of a common state between Tuscany and Latium.

In April 1849 he was again in Genoa, with Bixio, where a popular insurrection was strongly opposed by General Alberto La Marmora. Mameli soon left again for Rome, where the French had come to support the Papacy (Pope Pius IX had actually escaped from the town) and took active part in the combat.

In June, Mameli was accidentally injured in his left leg by the bayonet of one of his comrades. The wound was not serious, but an infection took hold, and after a time the leg had to be amputated. Mameli died of the infection on July 6, about two months before his 22nd birthday.

Above is a stamp of Mameli on his deathbed in July 1848, issued on the Centenary of the Revolution 1948.

Johannes R.Becher- East Germany Anthem Lyricist

After World War II and the division of Germany, the eastern part of the nation became a Communist republic and adopted its own anthem to distinguish them from their western neighbour. This text is not as communist-oriented as several other communist anthems are, and also references a united Germany, perhaps because the anthem first started to be in use in the "Russian sector" of Germany before it was divided into East and West. Starting in 1971, the lyrics, written by Johannes R. Becher, while still official, were rarely sung at official occassions, perhaps because the Communist leaders noticed that this anthem does not really fit to their idea of an East German state. The music was composed by Hanns Eisler.

After the popular revolution in 1989 (the high point of which was the tearing down of the Berlin Wall), the lyrics came into favour again, and the "Deutchland einig Vaterland" notion was once again the slogan of East Germany. The words were once again used poularly until the union of the two Germanys, and the last East German parliament even attempted to make "Auferstanden aus Ruinen" (Risen from Ruins) the anthem of the united Germany, but this was refused by West Germany. Therefore, the anthem was official until East and West Germany united again in 1990 into a unified Germany. (In an interesting note, it was discovered after the fall of the Berlin Wall, when a new anthem for a unified Germany was being sought, that the words to "Auferstanden aus Ruinen" fit the melody of the "Deutchlandlied".

The author and politician Johannes R. Becher was born on 22nd May 1891 And attended school in Munich, Göttingen and Ingolstadt. In 1910 he tried unsuccessfully to commi

t suicide. From 1911-1918, he studied Philology, Philosophy and Medicine in Munich, Jena and Berlin. After this period he became a member of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD). In 1932 he was a candidate for parliament for the Communists. After the seizure of power of the Hitler-gang he left Germany first to Prague then Paris, later Moscow. In 1934 he lost his German nationality. After the war he came back to Germany. In 1949 he wrote the text for the East German national anthem. In 1950 he was one of the founders of the Academy of Arts and Member of the East German parliament. In 1953-56 he was president of the Academy of Arts (he followed Arnold Zweig), a nd from 1954-58 he was Minister for Culture. In 1957 he lost all his political power and died in 1958.

Porumbescus's Trei Culori

"Trei culori", the anthem during the rule of Nicolae Ceauşescu's communist government, is based on the Romanian patriotic song "Tricolorul", written in 1879, which has the same music, but the text was revised to conform with Communist standards. The title refers to the national flag of Romania, which is a tricolour: red, yellow and blue. The composer also wrote the melody for the Albanian anthem. The anthem was in use 1977-1990.

After the fall of Ceauşescu in late December, 1989, "Trei Culori" remained the official anthem for several months until replaced by the deomcratic government. "Trei culori" was still played for those months in post-Communist Romania, without the Communist verses, and possibly with the original text.

Ciprian Porumbescu born Cyprian Gołęmbiowski on October 14, 1853 – June 6, 1883) was an Romanian composer born in Şipotele Sucevei in Bukovina (now Shepit, Putyla Raion, Ukraine). He was among the most celebrated Romanian composers of his time; his popular works include Crai nou, Trei culori, Song for the 1st of May, Ballad for violin and piano, and Serenada. In addition, he composed the music for Pe-al nostru steag e scris Unire, which was used for Albania's national anthem, Hymni i Flamurit. His work spreads over various forms and musical genres, but the majority of his work is choral and operetta.

Envelope with the score of Porumbescu's "Trei Culori" (in use-1977-1990) issued in 1977.

The National Anthem of Singapore

The National Anthem was written in the wake of nationalism during 1956-57. Its composer and author, Zubir Said, had written it on the basis of two words, "Majulah Singapura" or "Onward Singapore", as a theme for the city council's official functions. It was first performed in 1958 at the Victoria Theatre. After Singapore attained self government, the song was slightly re-written and was re-introduced on December 3, 1959, at the installation of the new head of state and the introduction of the state (later national) flag. The anthem was used as a state song within Malaysia, of which it was a part, and was adopted as a national anthem in 1965 upon independence.

In 2000, the anthem underwent a slight change in that the official arrangement was made more solemn and inspiring. The new version, arranged by Phoon Yew Tien, was officially recorded at the Victoria Concert Hall in November of that year (where the first performance took place 42 years earlier) and was officially unveiled in January, 2001.

Although Singapore has four official languages (Malay, English, Mandarin Chinese, and Tamil), the anthem is only to be sung in the original Malay lyrics, not any translation, as Malay is indigenous to the region and is designated the National Language.

Zubir Said (22 July 1907 – 16 November 1987) was a Singaporean composer originally from the Minangkabau highlands of Indonesia who composed the national anthem of Singapore, "Majulah Singapura" ("Onward Singapore"). A self-taught musician, Zubir also worked as a score arranger and songwriter for Cathay-Keris Film Productions for 12 years, composing numerous songs for the company's Malay films. He is believed to have written about 1,500 songs, with less than 10% of them ever recorded.

It has been said that Zubir was viewed by many as a composer with a "true Malay soul", as his songs were interwoven with historical messages and Malay truisms, and that he and his Minangkabau contemporaries awoke a wave of national consciousness in the 1950s.

Above is a commemorative first day cover of the 30th Anniversary of Independence of Singapore. The anthem score is shown.

Pacius and Runeberg on Stamps

Fredrik Pacius (March 19, 1809 Hamburg – January 8, 1891 Helsinki) was a German composer and conductor who lived most of his life in Finland. He has been called the "Father of Finnish music".

Pacius was appointed music teacher at the University of Helsinki in 1834. In Helsinki he founded a musical society, a student choir and an orchestra. In 1848 Pacius wrote the music to the poem Vårt land by Johan Ludvig Runeberg, which was to become Finland's national anthem. Pacius’s music was also used for the Estonian national anthem Mu isamaa, mu õnn ja rõõm and the Livonian national anthem Min izāmō, min sindimō.

In 1852 he composed Kung Karls jakt (The Hunt of King Charles) which was the first Finnish opera, with a libretto in the style of Romantic nationalism, like the national anthem designed to convince Finland's Grand Duke (i.e. Russia's Emperor) of the total loyalty of his subjects in Finland. The libretto was written by the author and historian Zacharias Topelius in close collaboration with the composer. His compositions also include a violin concerto, a symphony, a string quartet and several other operas.

Johan Ludvig Runeberg (5 February 1804, Jakobstad – 6 May 1877, Porvoo) was a Finnish poet, and is the national poet of Finland. He wrote in the Swedish language.

Runeberg studied first in the cities of Vaasa and Oulu, later on at the Imperial Academy of Turku, where he befriended Johan Vilhelm Snellman and Zacharias Topelius. His studies concentrated mainly on the classical languages of Latin and Greek. From 1837 onwards he lived in Porvoo, where he served as professor of Roman literature in the Gymnasium of Porvoo. He was married to his second cousin Fredrika Runeberg, née Tengström, with whom he had eight children and who wrote poems and novels, too.

Many of his poems deal with life in rural Finland. The best known of these is Bonden Paavo, (Farmer Paavo, Saarijärven Paavo in Finnish), about a smallholding peasant farmer in the poor parish of Saarijärvi and his determination, "sisu" (guts) and unwavering faith in providence in the face of a harsh climate and years of bad harvests. Three times, a frosty night destroys his crops. Every time, he mixes double the amount of bark into his bread to stave off starvation and works ever harder to dry off marsh into dryer land that would not be as exposed to the night frost. After the fourth year, Paavo finally gets a rich crop. As his wife exults, thanks God and tells Paavo to enjoy full bread made entirely out of grain, Paavo instructs his wife to mix bark into grain once more, because their neighbour's crop has been lost in a frost and he gives half of his crop to the needy neighbour.

Runeberg's most famous work is Fänrik Ståls sägner (The Tales of Ensign Stål, Vänrikki Stoolin tarinat in Finnish) written between 1848 and 1860. It is considered the greatest Finnish epic poem outside the native Kalevala tradition and contains tales of the Swedish War of 1808-09 with Russia. In the war, Sweden ignominiously lost Finland, which became a Grand Duchy in the Russian empire. The poem, which is composed episodically, emphasizes the common humanity of all sides in the conflict, while principally lauding the heroism of the Finns. The first poem "Vårt land" (Our Land, Maamme in Finnish) became the Finnish National Anthem. Runeberg is celebrated on 5 February each year.

Above, a souvenir sheet of Runeberg issued in 2004. Middle and below, Pacius and Runeberg, composer and anthem lyricist, semi-postal together issued in 1948.