On New Year's Eve, it is tradition to sing along as the
Danmarks Radio Girl's Choir sing the song on television, immediately after midnight following the other national anthem. Usually, only the first verse is sung on official occasions. Adopted in 1780, it is one of the oldest national anthems in the world.[2]
History
History of the lyrics
The lyrics first appeared in May 1778,[3] in
Johannes Ewald'svaudeville play The Fishermen, which premiered at the
Royal Danish Theatre in January 1780 on the birthday of
King Christian VII. The play depicts the heroics of fishermen from the northern part of
Zealand, who saved many sailors from drowning and then refused to take pay for it.[4] For this reason, the play was seen as a tribute to the navy, in particular because of the King Christian song.[citation needed] In the original staging of the play, however, only the final fourth verse was ever sung.[citation needed] The first three verses were omitted because of the animosity they showed towards
Sweden, who at the time were an important ally against the United Kingdom as members of the
League of Armed Neutrality.[citation needed]
Theme
The theme of the song is the heroics of
Danish-Norwegian sailors during the wars against Sweden in the 17th and 18th centuries. It specifically names the Danish-Norwegian naval heroes
King Christian IV,
Niels Juel and
Peter Wessel Tordenskiold. The first verse refers to the 1644
Battle of Colberger Heide, where King Christian IV is hurt by shrapnel and thought to be dead but quickly gets to his feet and incites his crew to continue the battle.
History of the music
It has long been debated who composed the music to the song. It was originally credited to
Johann Hartmann, the same composer who wrote the score for the original play Fiskerne, where the lyrics had first appeared.[5]
Another suggestion was that a friend of Johannes Ewald, High Court judge
Ditlev Ludvig Rogert, who was known to have played the violin, had been the original composer – a claim that was backed up by several 19th century intellectuals. In 1880,
Vilhelm Carl Ravn presented his theory that the score significantly preceded Ewald's poem and had no one particular composer. This is the most commonly supported theory today.
However, even today the score is also often wrongly credited to
Friedrich Kuhlau, who made "King Christian" a popular anthem by using his own arrangement of the score in his play Elverhøj,[6] which premiered at the wedding between Crown Prince Frederik (the later
King Frederik VII) and
Princess Vilhelmine in November 1828.
I Kong Christian stod ved højen mast
i røg og damp;
hans værge hamrede så fast,
at gotens hjelm og hjerne brast.
Da sank hvert fjendtligt spejl og mast
i røg og damp.
Fly, skreg de, fly, hvad flygte kan!
hvo står for Danmarks Christian
hvo står for Danmarks Christian
i kamp?
II Niels Juel gav agt på stormens brag.
Nu er det tid.
Han hejsede det røde flag
og slog på fjenden slag i slag.
Da skreg de højt blandt stormens brag:
Nu er det tid!
Fly, skreg de, hver, som véd et skjul!
hvo kan bestå mod Danmarks Juel
hvo kan bestå mod Danmarks Juel
i strid?
III
O,
Nordhav! Glimt af
Wessel brød
din mørke sky.
Da ty'de kæmper til dit skød;
thi med ham lynte skræk og død.
Fra valen hørtes vrål, som brød
den tykke sky.
Fra Danmark lyner Tordenskjold;
hver give sig i himlens vold
hver give sig i himlens vold
og fly!
IV
Du danskes vej til ros og magt,
sortladne hav!
Modtag din ven, som uforsagt
tør møde faren med foragt
så stolt som du mod stormens magt,
sortladne hav!
Og rask igennem larm og spil
og kamp og sejr før mig til
og kamp og sejr før mig til
min grav!
I King Christian stood by the lofty mast In mist and smoke;
His sword was hammering so fast,
Through Gothic helm and brain it passed;
Then sank each hostile hulk and mast,
In mist and smoke.
"Fly!" shouted they, "fly, he who can!
Who braves of
Denmark's Christian,
Who braves of Denmark's Christian,
The stroke?"
II Niels Juel gave heed to the tempest's roar,
Now is the hour!
He hoisted his
blood-red flag once more,
And smote upon the foe full sore,
And shouted loud, through the tempest's roar,
"Now is the hour!"
"Fly!" shouted they, "for shelter fly!
Of Denmark's Juel who can defy,
Of Denmark's Juel who can defy,
The power?"
III North Sea! a glimpse of
Wessel rent
Thy murky sky!
Then champions to thine arms were sent;
Terror and Death glared where he went;
From the waves was heard a wail, that rent
Thy murky sky!
From Denmark thunders
Tordenskiol',
Let each to Heaven commend his soul,
Let each to Heaven commend his soul,
And fly!
IV
Path of the
Dane to fame and might!
Dark-rolling wave!
Receive thy friend, who, scorning flight,
Goes to meet danger with despite,
Proudly as thou the tempest's might,
Dark-rolling wave!
And 'mid pleasures and alarms,
And war and victory, be thine arms,
And war and victory, be thine arms,
My grave!
See also
Festival Overture on the Danish National Anthem – a musical piece by Tchaikovsky composed for the visit of the
tsarevich to the Moscow Conservatoire accompanied by his new Danish wife. The piece is based on Kong Christian stod ved højen mast but also incorporates elements of the Russian national anthem.