The Internationale

For the 1990 folk album, see The Internationale (album).

The Internationale

L'Internationale in the original French.
International anthem of International Social Democratic Movement International Socialist Movement International Anarchist Movement International Communist Movement International Democratic Movement
Also known as	L'Internationale (French)
Lyrics	Eugène Pottier, 1871
Music	Pierre De Geyter, 1888
Adopted	1890s
Music sample
The Internationale (Instrumental)

The Internationale (L'Internationale in French) is a widely sung left-wing anthem. The song became the anthem of international socialism when the Soviet Union adopted it as its national anthem. Its original French refrain is C'est la lutte finale / Groupons-nous et demain / L'Internationale / Sera le genre humain. (Literally translated: "This is the final struggle / Let us group together and tomorrow / The Internationale / Will be the human race.") The Internationale has been translated into many languages. It is often sung with the hand raised in a clenched fist salute and is sometimes followed (in English-speaking places) with a chant of "The workers united will never be defeated". The Internationale has been celebrated by socialists, communists, and anarchists.

Original lyrics and copyright

The original French words were written in June 1871 by Eugène Pottier (1816–1887, previously a member of the Paris Commune) and were originally intended to be sung to the tune of La Marseillaise. Pierre De Geyter (1848–1932) set the poem to music in 1888. His melody was first publicly performed in July 1888 and became widely used soon after.

In an unsuccessful attempt to save Pierre De Geyter's job as a woodcarver, the 6,000 leaflets printed by Lille printer Bolboduc only mentioned the French version of his family name (Degeyter). In 1904, Pierre's brother Adolphe was induced by the Lille mayor Gustave Delory to claim copyright, so that the income of the song would continue to go to Delory's French Socialist Party. Pierre De Geyter lost the first copyright case in 1914, but after his brother committed suicide and left a note explaining the fraud, Pierre was declared the copyright owner by a court of appeal in 1922.

Pierre De Geyter died in 1932. His music of the Internationale is copyrighted in France until October 2017^{[citation needed]}. The duration of copyright in France is 70 years following the end of the year when the author died, plus (for musical works) 6 years and 152 days to compensate for World War I, and 8 years and 120 days to compensate for World War II respectively. In 2005, Le Chant du Monde, the corporation administering the authors' rights, asked Pierre Merejkowsky, the film director and an actor of Insurrection / résurrection, to pay €1,000 for whistling the song for seven seconds.

However, as the Internationale music was published before 1 July 1909 outside the United States of America, it is in the public domain in the USA. Pierre De Geyter's music is also in the public domain in countries and areas whose copyright durations are authors' lifetime plus 75 years or less. As Eugène Pottier died in 1887, his original French lyrics are in the public domain. Gustave Delory once acquired the copyright of his lyrics through the songwriter G B Clement having bought it from Pottier's widow.

French lyrics	Literal English translation
First stanza
Debout, les damnés de la terre Debout, les forçats de la faim La raison tonne en son cratère C'est l'éruption de la fin Du passé faisons table rase Foule esclave, debout, debout Le monde va changer de base Nous ne sommes rien, soyons tout  |: C'est la lutte finale   Groupons-nous, et demain   L'Internationale   Sera le genre humain :|	Stand up, damned of the Earth Stand up, prisoners of starvation Reason thunders in its volcano This is the eruption of the end Of the past let us make a clean slate Enslaved masses, stand up, stand up The world is about to change its foundation We are nothing, let us be all  |: This is the final struggle   Let us group together, and tomorrow   The Internationale   Will be the human race :|
Second stanza
Il n'est pas de sauveurs suprêmes Ni Dieu, ni César, ni tribun Producteurs, sauvons-nous nous-mêmes Décrétons le salut commun Pour que le voleur rende gorge Pour tirer l'esprit du cachot Soufflons nous-mêmes notre forge Battons le fer quand il est chaud  |: C'est la lutte finale   Groupons-nous, et demain   L'Internationale   Sera le genre humain :|	There are no supreme saviours Neither God, nor Caesar, nor tribune. Producers, let us save ourselves Decree the common salvation So that the thief expires, So that the spirit be pulled from its prison, Let us fan the forge ourselves Strike the iron while it is hot  |: This is the final struggle   Let us group together, and tomorrow   The Internationale   Will be the human race :|
Third stanza
L'État comprime et la loi triche L'impôt saigne le malheureux Nul devoir ne s'impose au riche Le droit du pauvre est un mot creux C'est assez, languir en tutelle L'égalité veut d'autres lois Pas de droits sans devoirs dit-elle Égaux, pas de devoirs sans droits  |: C'est la lutte finale   Groupons-nous, et demain   L'Internationale   Sera le genre humain :|	The State oppresses and the law cheats Tax bleeds the unfortunate No duty is imposed on the rich The rights of the poor is an empty phrase Enough languishing in custody Equality wants other laws: No rights without duties, she says, Equally, no duties without rights  |: This is the final struggle   Let us group together, and tomorrow   The Internationale   Will be the human race :|
Fourth stanza
Hideux dans leur apothéose Les rois de la mine et du rail Ont-ils jamais fait autre chose Que dévaliser le travail ? Dans les coffres-forts de la bande Ce qu'il a créé s'est fondu En décrétant qu'on le lui rende Le peuple ne veut que son dû.  |: C'est la lutte finale   Groupons-nous, et demain   L'Internationale   Sera le genre humain :|	Hideous in their apotheosis The kings of the mine and of the rail Have they ever done anything other Than steal work? Inside the safeboxes of the gang, What work had created melted. By ordering that they give it back The people want only their due.  |: This is the final struggle   Let us group together, and tomorrow   The Internationale   Will be the human race :|
Fifth stanza
Les rois nous saoulaient de fumées Paix entre nous, guerre aux tyrans Appliquons la grève aux armées Crosse en l'air, et rompons les rangs S'ils s'obstinent, ces cannibales À faire de nous des héros Ils sauront bientôt que nos balles Sont pour nos propres généraux  |: C'est la lutte finale   Groupons-nous, et demain   L'Internationale   Sera le genre humain :|	The kings made us drunk with fumes, Peace among us, war to the tyrants! Let the armies go on strike, Stocks in the air, and break ranks If they insist, these cannibals On making heroes of us, They will know soon that our bullets Are for our own generals  |: This is the final struggle   Let us group together, and tomorrow   The Internationale   Will be the human race :|
Sixth stanza
Ouvriers, paysans, nous sommes Le grand parti des travailleurs La terre n'appartient qu'aux hommes L'oisif ira loger ailleurs Combien de nos chairs se repaissent Mais si les corbeaux, les vautours Un de ces matins disparaissent Le soleil brillera toujours.  |: C'est la lutte finale   Groupons-nous, et demain   L'Internationale   Sera le genre humain :|	Workers, peasants, we are The great party of labourers The earth belongs only to men The idle will go to reside elsewhere How much of our flesh have they consumed, But if these ravens, these vultures Disappeared one of these days The sun will shine forever  |: This is the final struggle   Let us group together, and tomorrow   The International   Will be the human race :|

Translations into other languages

The German version, Die Internationale (translation by Emil Luckhardt 1910)^{[citation needed]} was adopted by the protesters on the streets of East Berlin in 1953 and again in October 1989, when East Germans taken prisoner by their own police following demonstrations in the wake of Mikhail Gorbachev's visit sang the hymn to embarrass their captors by suggesting they had abandoned the socialist cause they were supposed to serve. Luckhardt's version of the final line of the chorus tellingly reads: "Die Internationale erkämpft das Menschenrecht". (The Internationale will win our human rights.) It was coupled with the chant: "Volkspolizei, steh dem Volke bei" (People's police, stand with the people!). The Internationale in Chinese (simplified Chinese: 国际歌; traditional Chinese: 國際歌; pinyin: Guójìgē), literally the International Song, has several different sets of lyrics. One such version served as the de facto anthem of the Communist Party of China, the national anthem of the Chinese Soviet Republic, as well as a rallying song of the students and workers at the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. Versions of the song in Indian languages, particularly Bengali and Malayalam, have existed since the 1950s since the translation of the song for the people of the Indian state of Kerala by actor and social activist Premji for the united Communist Party of India (CPI). In the 1980s, more translations appeared. Translations by Sachidanandan and Mokeri Ramachandran were sung by the activists of Janakeeya Samskarikavedi, an organisation connected with CPI(Marxist-Leninist) (CPI(ML). Translation by N. P. Chandrasekharan was for Students Federation of India (SFI), the student organisation associated with CPI(Marxist) (CPI(M) and published in the Student Monthly, the organ of SFI.

Russian lyrics

Интернационал

English: The Internationale
Internatsional
anthem of Russian SFSR Soviet Union CPSU CPRF RCWP-RPC RCYL(b)
Lyrics	Arkady Yakovlevich Kots, 1902
Music	Pierre De Geyter, 1888
Adopted	1918 (as anthem of Russian SFSR) 1922 (as anthem of Soviet Union)
Relinquished	1944
Music sample
Russian vocal

The Russian version was initially translated by Aron Kots (Arkady Yakovlevich Kots) in 1902 and printed in London in Zhizn, a Russian émigré magazine. The first Russian version consisted of three stanzas (as opposed to six stanzas in the original French lyrics, and based on stanzas 1, 2 and 6) and the refrain. After the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia, the text was slightly re-worded to get rid of "now useless" future tenses - particularly the refrain was reworded (the future tense was replaced by the present, and the first person plural possessive pronoun was introduced). In 1918, the chief-editor of Izvestia, Yuri Steklov, appealed to Russian writers to translate the other three stanzas and in the end, the song was expanded into six stanzas. In 1944, the Soviet Union adopted the Hymn of the Soviet Union as its national anthem. Prior to that time, the Internationale served as the principal musical expression of allegiance to the ideals of the October Revolution and the Soviet Union. (The Internationale continued to be recognized as the official song of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, and the post-1919 Soviet version is still used by the Communist Party of the Russian Federation.) The three stanzas by Kots were as follows:

Russian translation	Latin alphabet transliteration	Literal English translation
First stanza
Вставай, проклятьем заклеймённый, Весь мир голодных и рабов! Кипит наш разум возмущённый И в смертный бой вести готов. Весь мир насилья мы разрушим До основанья, а затем Мы наш, мы новый мир построим, — Кто был ничем, тот станет всем. Припев:  |: Это есть наш последний   И решительный бой.   С Интернационалом   Воспрянет род людской! :|	Vstavay, proklyat'yem zakleym'onny, ves' mir golodnykh i rabov! Kipit nash razum vozmushchoinny I v smertiny boy vesti gotov. Ves' mir nasilya my razrushim do oslovanya, a zatem my nash, my novy mir postroim, — kto byl nichem, tot stanet vsem. Pripev:  |: Eto yest nash poslednij   I reshitelniy boy.   S Internacionalom   vospryanet rod lyudskoy. :|	Get up, you who are branded by a curse, You, the world's starving and enslaved! Our outraged minds are boiling, Ready to lead us into a deadly fight. We will destroy this world of violence Down to the foundations, and then We will build our new world. He who was nothing will become everything! CHORUS:  |: This will be the final    and decisive battle.    With the International    the mankind will get up. :|
Second stanza
Никто не даст нам избавленья: Ни бог, ни царь и не герой! Добьёмся мы освобожденья Своею собственной рукой. Чтоб свергнуть гнёт рукой умелой, Отвоевать своё добро, — Вздувайте горн и куйте смело, Пока железо горячо!  |:Это есть наш последний   И решительный бой.   С Интернационалом   Воспрянет род людской!:|	Nikto ne dast nam izbavlenya: Ni bog, ni tsar i ne geroy! Dobyomsa my osvobozhdenya svoyeyu sobstvennoy rukoy. Chtob svergnut' gn'ot rukoy umeloy, otvoyevat' svoyo dobro, – Vzduvajte gorn i kuyte smelo, poka zhelezo goryacho!  |: Eto yest nash posledniy   I reshitel'niy boy.   S Internacionalom   vospryanet rod lyudskoy. :|	No one will grant us deliverance, Not god, nor tsar, nor hero. We will win our liberation, With our very own hands. To throw down oppression with a skilled hand, To take back what is ours – Fire up the furnace and hammer boldly, while the iron is still hot!  |: This will be the final    and decisive battle.    With the International    the mankind will get up. :|
Third stanza
Довольно кровь сосать, вампиры, Тюрьмой, налогом, нищетой! У вас — вся власть, все блага мира, А наше право — звук пустой ! Мы жизнь построим по-иному — И вот наш лозунг боевой: Вся власть народу трудовому! А дармоедов всех долой!  |:Это есть наш последний  И решительный бой;  С Интернационалом  Воспрянет род людской!:|	Dovoľno krov sosať, vampiry, ťuřmoj, nalogom, niščetoj! U vas — vśa vlasť, vse blaga mira, a naše pravo — zvuk pustoj! My žizň postroim po-inomu — i vot naš lozung bojevoj: Vśa vlasť narodu trudovomu! A darmojedov vseh doloj!  |: Eto jesť naš poslednij   i rešiteľnyj boj.   S Internacionalom   vospřanet rod ľudskoj. :|	You've sucked enough of our blood, you vampires, With prison, taxes and poverty! You have all the power, all the blessings of the world, And our rights are but an empty sound! We'll make our own lives in a different way - And here is our battle cry: All the power to the people of labor! And away with all the parasites!  |:This is our last  And decisive battle;  With the Internationale  rise up the human race!:|
Fourth stanza
Презренны вы в своём богатстве, Угля и стали короли! Вы ваши троны, тунеядцы, На наших спинах возвели. Заводы, фабрики, палаты — Всё нашим создано трудом. Пора! Мы требуем возврата Того, что взято грабежом.  |:Это есть наш последний  И решительный бой;  С Интернационалом  Воспрянет род людской! :|	Prezrenny vy v svojom bogatstve, ugl'a i stali koroli! Vy vaši trony, tunejadcy, na naših spinah vozveli. Zavody, fabriki, palaty — vs'o našim sozdano trudom. Pora! My trebujem vozvrata Togo, čto vz'ato grabežom.  |: Eto jest' naš poslednij   i rešitel'nij boj.   S Internacionalom   vospr'anet rod l'udskoj. :|	Contemptible you are in your wealth, You kings of coal and steel! You had your thrones, parasites, At our backs erected. All the factories, all the chambers - All were made by our hands. It's time! We demand the return Of that which was stolen from us.  |:This is our last  And decisive battle;  With the Internationale  rise up the human race!:|
Fifth stanza
Довольно королям в угоду Дурманить нас в чаду войны! Война тиранам! Мир Народу! Бастуйте, армии сыны! Когда ж тираны нас заставят В бою геройски пасть за них — Убийцы, в вас тогда направим Мы жерла пушек боевых!  |: Это есть наш последний  И решительный бой;  С Интернационалом  Воспрянет род людской! :|	Dovol'no korol'am v ugodu durmanit' nas v čadu vojny! Vojna tiranam! Mir Narodu! Bastujte, armii syny! Kogda ž tirany nas zastav'at v boju gerojski past' za nih — ubijcy, v vas togda napravim my žerla pušek bojevyh!  |: Eto jest' naš poslednij   i rešitel'nij boj.   S Internacionalom   vospr'anet rod l'udskoj. :|	Enough of clouding our minds in the haze of war On the behalf of kings! War to the tyrants! Peace to the people! Go on strike, sons of the army! And if the tyrants tell us To fall heroically in battle for them - Then, murderers, we will point The muzzles of our cannons at you!  |: This is our last  And decisive battle;  With the Internationale  rise up the human race! : |
Sixth stanza
Лишь мы, работники всемирной Великой армии труда, Владеть землёй имеем право, Но паразиты – никогда! И если гром великий грянет Над сворой псов и палачей, — Для нас всё так же солнце станет Сиять огнём своих лучей.  |: Это есть наш последний   И решительный бой.   С Интернационалом   Воспрянет род людской! :|	Liš' my, rabotniki vsemirnoj velikoj armii truda, vladet' zeml'oj imejem pravo, no parazity – nikogda! I jesli grom velikij gr'anet nad svoroj psov i palačej, – dl'a nas vs'o tak že solnce stanet sijat' ogn'om svoih lučej.  |: Eto jest' naš poslednij   i rešitel'nij boj.   S Internacionalom   vospr'anet rod l'udskoj. :|	Only we, the workers of the worldwide Great army of labour, Have the right to own the land, But the parasites - never! And if the great thunder rolls Over the pack of dogs and executioners, For us, the sun will forever Shine on with its fiery rays.  |: This will be the final    and decisive battle.    With the Internationale    the mankind will get up. :|

English lyrics

The traditional British version of The Internationale is usually sung in three verses, while the American version, authored by Charles Hope Kerr with five verses, is usually sung in two. The American version is sometimes sung with the phrase "the internationale", "the international soviet", or "the international union" in place of "the international working class". In English renditions, "Internationale" is sometimes sung as /ɪntərnæʃəˈnæli/ (rhyming with "valley") rather than the French pronunciation of [lɛ̃tɛʁnasjɔnal(ə)].

The English versions are known to be notoriously difficult to sing, as the lyrics may appear sometimes forced and unnatural. British musician Billy Bragg, after talking to the American folk singer and activist Pete Seeger, agreed that the old lyrics were "archaic and unsinkable". Bragg composed revised verses for the song, based on the British version. The recording was released on his album The Internationale along with reworkings of other socialist songs. A full, six-stanza translation can be found on the Wikisource page on The Internationale.

British Translation	Billy Bragg's Revision	American version
First stanza
Arise, ye workers from your slumber, Arise, ye prisoners of want. For reason in revolt now thunders, and at last ends the age of cant! Away with all your superstitions, Servile masses, arise, arise! We'll change henceforth the old tradition, And spurn the dust to win the prize!   So comrades, come rally,   And the last fight let us face.   The Internationale,   Unites the human race.   So comrades, come rally,   And the last fight let us face.   The Internationale,   Unites the human race.	Stand up, all victims of oppression, For the tyrants fear your might! Don't cling so hard to your possessions, For you have nothing if you have no rights! Let racist ignorance be ended, For respect makes the empires fall! Freedom is merely privilege extended, Unless enjoyed by one and all.   So come brothers and sisters,   For the struggle carries on.   The Internationale,   Unites the world in song.   So comrades, come rally,   For this is the time and place!   The international ideal,   Unites the human race.	Arise, you prisoners of starvation! Arise, you wretched of the earth! For justice thunders condemnation: A better world's in birth! No more tradition's chains shall bind us, Arise you slaves, no more in thrall! The earth shall rise on new foundations: We have been nought, we shall be all!   'Tis the final conflict,   Let each stand in his place.   The international soviet   Shall be the human race   'Tis the final conflict,   Let each stand in his place.   The international working class   Shall be the human race
Second stanza
No more deluded by reaction, On tyrants only we'll make war! The soldiers too will take strike action, They'll break ranks and fight no more! And if those cannibals keep trying, To sacrifice us to their pride, They soon shall hear the bullets flying, We'll shoot the generals on our own side.   So comrades, come rally,   And the last fight let us face.   The Internationale,   Unites the human race.   So comrades, come rally,   And the last fight let us face.   The Internationale,   Unites the human race.	Let no one build walls to divide us, Walls of hatred nor walls of stone. Come greet the dawn and stand beside us, We'll live together or we'll die alone. In our world poisoned by exploitation, Those who have taken, now they must give! And end the vanity of nations, We've but one Earth on which to live.   So come brothers and sisters,   For the struggle carries on.   The Internationale,   Unites the world in song.   So comrades, come rally,   For this is the time and place!   The international ideal,   Unites the human race.	We want no condescending saviors To rule us from their judgment hall, We workers ask not for their favors Let us consult for all: To make the thief disgorge his booty To free the spirit from its cell, We must ourselves decide our duty, We must decide, and do it well.   'Tis the final conflict,   Let each stand in his place.   The international soviet   Shall be the human race   'Tis the final conflict,   Let each stand in his place.   The international working class   Shall be the human race
Third stanza
No saviour from on high delivers, No faith have we in prince or peer. Our own right hand the chains must shiver, Chains of hatred, greed and fear. E'er the thieves will out with their booty, And to all give a happier lot. Each at his forge must do their duty, And we'll strike the iron while it's hot.   So comrades, come rally,   And the last fight let us face.   The Internationale,   Unites the human race.   So comrades, come rally,   And the last fight let us face.   The Internationale,   Unites the human race.	And so begins the final drama, In the streets and in the fields. We stand unbowed before their armour, We defy their guns and shields! When we fight, provoked by their aggression, Let us be inspired by life and love. For though they offer us concessions, Change will not come from above!   So come brothers and sisters,   For the struggle carries on.   The Internationale,   Unites the world in song.   So comrades, come rally,   For this is the time and place!   The Internationale,   Unites the human race.

See also

• Anarchism and the arts
• Eugene Pottier
• Pierre De Geyter
• The Internationale, an album by Billy Bragg featuring Bragg's rewritten lyrics to the song.
• The Internationale in Chinese

External links

• A documentary on the Internationale.
• Another large collection of downloadable recordings
• The Internationale: lyrics and tabs
• Communist propaganda clip with the Internationale as background music (Albanian and Russian)
• Downloadable recordings in more than 40 languages
• Piano arrangements and orchestral MIDI file of The Internationale
• The Internationale in 98 languages