The Internationale

For the Billy Bragg album, see The Internationale (album). For the Brainiac EP, see Internationale (EP).

"The Internationale"

"L'Internationale", original French version
International anthem of anarchists, communists, and socialists
Also known as	L'Internationale (French)
Lyrics	Eugène Pottier, 1871
Music	Pierre De Geyter, 1888
Audio sample
File:The International Instrumental Long.ogg "The Internationale" (instrumental) file help

Sung with English lyrics

"The Internationale" (French: "L'Internationale", [l‿ɛ̃.tɛʁ.na.sjɔ.nal(ə)]) is a left-wing anthem. It has been a standard of the socialist movement since the late nineteenth century, when the Second International adopted it as its official anthem. The title arises from the "First International", an alliance of workers which held a congress in 1864. The author of the anthem's lyrics, Eugène Pottier, an anarchist, attended this congress. In turn, the song was later set to an original melody composed by Pierre De Geyter, a Marxist.

History

"The Internationale" has been adopted as the anthem of various anarchist, communist, and socialist movements.

From 1918 to 1944, "The Internationale" was used as an anthem of the Bolshevik Party, Soviet Russia and subsequently the USSR, before being replaced with the more nationally-focused State Anthem of the Soviet Union, reflecting Stalinist trends. (In 1917 and early 1918 Worker's Marseillaise was used as such). It was also used as a national anthem by the Chinese Soviet Republic, Bavarian Soviet Republic, Slovak Soviet Republic, and Hungarian Soviet Republic.

File:The International Insrtumental.ogg

Short Version

"The Internationale" is one of the most universally translated anthems in history.

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". In 1888 Pierre De Geyter (1848–1932) set the earlier lyrics to the melody of Chant du depart with slight modifications. De Geyter's melody was first publicly performed in July 1888, and soon thereafter Pottier's lyrics became closely associated with, and widely used with, De Geyter's new melody. Thus "The Internationale" gained an identity that was entirely distinct, and no longer in any way directly tied to the French national anthem, the Marseillaise.

In a successful 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 died by suicide and left a note explaining the fraud, Pierre was declared the copyright owner by a court of appeal in 1922.

In 1972 "Montana Edition", owned by Hans R. Beierlein, bought the rights to the song for 5,000 Deutschmark, first for the territory of West Germany, then in East Germany, then worldwide. East Germany paid Montana Edition 20,000 DM every year for its rights to play the music. Pierre De Geyter died in 1932, causing the copyrights to expire in 2002. Luckhardt's German text is public domain since 1984.

As the "Internationale" music was published before 1 July 1909 outside the United States, it is in the public domain in the United States. As of 2013, Pierre De Geyter's music is also in the public domain in countries and areas whose copyright durations are authors' lifetime plus 80 years or less. Due to France's wartime copyright extensions (prorogations de guerre), SACEM claimed that the music was still copyrighted in France until October 2014. Because of this, the "Internationale" is also in public domain within France.

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.

First-known French version

There exists the following written version of the poem, which is older than the final version printed on 1887. It was published in 1990 by Robert Brécy:

French

Literal English translation

Couplet 1 : Debout ! l'âme du prolétaire Travailleurs, groupons-nous enfin. Debout ! les damnés de la terre ! Debout ! les forçats de la faim ! Pour vaincre la misère et l'ombre Foule esclave, debout ! debout ! C'est nous le droit, c'est nous le nombre : Nous qui n'étions rien, soyons tout : Refrain : C’est la lutte finale Groupons-nous et demain L’Internationale Sera le genre humain : Couplet 2 : Il n’est pas de sauveurs suprêmes : Ni Dieu, ni César, ni Tribun. Travailleurs, sauvons-nous nous-mêmes ; Travaillons au salut commun. Pour que les voleurs rendent gorge, Pour tirer l’esprit du cachot, Allumons notre grande forge ! Battons le fer quand il est chaud ! Refrain Couplet 3 : 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 ! Bandit, prince, exploiteur ou prêtre Qui vit de l'homme est criminel ; Notre ennemi, c'est notre maître : Voilà le mot d'ordre éternel. Refrain Couplet 4 : L'engrenage encor va nous tordre : Le capital est triomphant ; La mitrailleuse fait de l'ordre En hachant la femme et l'enfant. L'usure folle en ses colères Sur nos cadavres calcinés Soude à la grève des Salaires La grève des assassinés. Refrain Couplet 5 : Ouvriers, Paysans, nous sommes Le grand parti des travailleurs. La terre n’appartient qu’aux hommes. L'oisif ira loger ailleurs. C'est de nos chairs qu'ils se repaissent ! Si les corbeaux si les vautours Un de ces matins disparaissent … La Terre tournera toujours. Refrain Couplet 6 : Qu'enfin le passé s'engloutisse ! Qu'un genre humain transfiguré Sous le ciel clair de la Justice Mûrisse avec l'épi doré ! Ne crains plus les nids de chenilles Qui gâtaient l'arbre et ses produits Travail, étends sur nos familles Tes rameaux tout rouges de fruits ! Refrain

Verse 1: Stand up! the soul of the proletarian Workers, let's get together at last. Stand up! the damned of the earth! Stand up! the convicts of hunger! To overcome misery and shadow Slave crowd, stand up! stand up! We are the right, we are the number: We who were nothing, let us be everything: Chorus: This is the final struggle Let's group together and tomorrow The International Will be the human race: Verse 2: There are no supreme saviors: Neither God, nor Caesar, nor Tribune. Workers, let's save ourselves; Let us work for common salvation. So that thieves can repay, To get the spirit out of the dungeon, Let's light our great forge! Let's strike while the iron is hot! Chorus Verse 3: Kings inebriated us with smoke Peace between us! war on the Tyrants! Let's apply the strike to the armies Stick in the air! and let's break ranks! Bandit, prince, exploiter or priest He who lives on man is a criminal; Our enemy is our master: This is the eternal watchword. Chorus Verse 4: The gears still will twist us: Capital is triumphant; The machine gun makes order By chopping the woman and the child. Crazy wear and tear in its anger On our charred corpses Welcomes the wage strike The strike of the murdered. Chorus Verse 5: Workers, peasants, we are The great party of workers. The earth belongs only to men. The idle will go and stay elsewhere. It is our flesh that they feast on! If the crows if the vultures One of those mornings disappear ... The Earth will still turn. Chorus Verse 6: May the past finally be swallowed up! That a transfigured human race Under the clear sky of Justice Ripe with the golden ear! No longer fear caterpillar nests That spoiled the tree and its products Work, spread over our families Your branches all red with fruit! Chorus

Final French lyrics

French

Literal English translation

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 Chorus C'est la lutte finale Groupons-nous, et demain L'Internationale Sera le genre humain. 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. Chorus L'État opprime 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. Chorus 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. Chorus 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. Chorus 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. Chorus

Arise, wretched of the earth Arise, convicts of hunger Reason thunders in its volcano This is the eruption of the end Of the past let us wipe the slate clean Masses, slaves, arise, arise The world is about to change its foundation We are nothing, let us be all Chorus This is the final struggle Let us gather together, and tomorrow The Internationale Will be the human race There are no supreme saviors Neither God, nor Caesar, nor tribune. Producers, let us save ourselves Decree on the common welfare That the thief return his plunder, That the spirit be pulled from its prison Let us fan the forge ourselves Strike the iron while it is hot Chorus The state represses and the law cheats The tax bleeds the unfortunate No duty is imposed on the rich "Rights of the poor" is a hollow phrase Enough languishing in custody Equality wants other laws: No rights without obligations, it says, And as well, no obligations without rights Chorus Hideous in their self-glorification Kings of the mine and rail Have they ever done anything other? Than steal work? Into the coffers of that lot, What work creates has melted In demanding that they give it back The people want only its due. Chorus The kings make us drunk with their fumes, Peace among ourselves, war to the tyrants! Let the armies go on strike, Guns in the air, and break ranks If these cannibals insist On making heroes of us, Soon they will know our bullets Are for our own generals Chorus Laborers, peasants, we are The great party of workers The earth belongs only to men The idle will go reside elsewhere How much of our flesh they feed on, But if the ravens and vultures Disappear one of these days The sun will still shine Chorus

Russian translation

The Russian version was initially translated by Arkady 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. On 15 March 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 full song is as follows:

Internatsional

English: The Internationale
Интернационал
Former national anthem of the Russian SFSR, 1918–22 Former national anthem of the Soviet Union, 1922–44
Lyrics	Аркадий Коц (Arkady Kots), 1902
Music	Pierre De Geyter, 1888
Published	1902
Adopted	1918 (Russian SFSR) 1922 (Soviet Union)
Relinquished	1922 (Russian SFSR) 1944 (Soviet Union)
Succeeded by	State Anthem of the Soviet Union (Государственный гимн Советского Союза)
Audio sample
The Internationale, Russian file help

Russian translation	Transliteration	Literal English translation
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: (×2) Это есть наш последний И решительный бой; С Интернационалом Воспрянет род людской! 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! Припев 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! Припев 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. Припев 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! Припев 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. Припев	Vstavay, proklyatyem zakleymyonny, Ves mir golodnykh i rabov! Kipit nash razum vozmushchyonny I v smertny boy vesti gotov. Ves mir nasilya my razrushim Do osnovanya, a zatem My nash, my novy mir postroim, – Kto byl nichem, tot stanet vsem. Pripev: (×2) Eto yest nash posledny I reshitelny boy; S Internatsionalom Vospryanet rod lyudskoy! Nikto ne dast nam izbavlenya: Ni bog, ni tsar i ne geroy! Dobyomsya my osvobozhdenya Svoyeyu sobstvennoy rukoy. Chtob svergnut gnyot rukoy umeloy, Otvoyevat svoyo dobro, – Vzduvayte gorn i kuyte smelo, Poka zhelezo goryacho! Pripev Dovolno krov sosat, vampiry, Tyurmoy, nalogom, nishchetoy! U vas  – vsya vlast, vse blaga mira, A nashe pravo  – zvuk pustoy! My zhizn postroim po-inomu – I vot nash lozung boyevoy: Vsya vlast narodu trudovomu! A darmoyedov vseh doloy! Pripev Prezrenny vy v svoyom bogatstve, Uglya i stali koroli! Vy vashi trony, tuneyadtsy, Na nashikh spinakh vozveli. Zavody, fabriki, palaty – Vsyo nashim sozdano trudom. Pora! My trebuyem vozvrata Togo, chto vzyato grabezhom. Pripev Dovolno korolyam v ugodu Durmanit nas v chadu voyny! Voyna tiranam! Mir Narodu! Bastuyte, armii syny! Kogda zh tirany nas zastavyat V boyu geroyski past za nikh – Ubiytsy, v vas togda napravim my zherla pushek boyevykh! Pripev Lish my, rabotniki vsemirnoy Velikoy armii truda, Vladet zemlyoy imeyem pravo, No parazity  – nikogda! I yesli grom veliky gryanet Nad svoroy psov i palachey, – Dlya nas vsyo tak zhe solntse stanet siyat ognyom svoikh luchey. Pripev	Get up, branded by the curse, The whole world of the hungry and the slaves! Our mind is boiling indignant And ready to lead to deadly fight. We will destroy the whole world of violence To the ground and then We will build our own new world, He who was nothing - will become everything! Refrain: (×2) This is our last And decisive battle; With the International Will rise the human race! No one will give us deliverance: Not God, not tsar, and not a hero - We will achieve liberation With our own hand. To overthrow oppression with a skillful hand, To win back your good, - Blow up the forge and forge boldly, While the iron is hot! Refrain Enough of sucking blood, vampires, By prison, tax, poverty! You have all the power, all the blessings of the world, And our right is an empty sound! We will build a life in a different way - And here is our battle slogan: All power to the working people! And all the freeloaders down! Refrain You are despicable in your wealth, Kings of coal and steel! You parasites! Your thrones Are erected on our backs. Plants, factories, palaces - Everything is created by our labor. It's time! We demand a return Of everything taken by robbery. Refrain Enough for kings to please Intoxicate us into the daze of war! War on tyrants! Peace to the People! Strike, sons of the army! And once the tyrants force us In battle fall as heroes for them - Murderers, we then will turn against you The barrels of our combat cannons! Refrain Only we, the workers of the world Great Army of Labor We have the right to own land, But parasites - never! And if a great thunder breaks out Over a pack of dogs and executioners, For us, the Sun again will start To shine the fire of its rays. Refrain

^

English translations

The traditional UK version of "The Internationale" is usually sung in three verses, while the American version, written 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/ rather than the French pronunciation of [ɛ̃tɛʁnasjɔnal(ə)]. In modern usage, the American verison also often uses "their" instead of "his" in "Let each stand in his place", and "free" instead of "be" in "Shall be the Human race."

Pete Seeger asked Billy Bragg to sing "The Internationale" with him at the Vancouver Folk Festival in 1989. Bragg thought the traditional English lyrics were archaic and unsingable (Scottish musician Dick Gaughan and former Labour MP Tony Benn disagreed), and composed a new set of lyrics. The recording was released on his album The Internationale along with reworkings of other socialist songs.

Popular references

• In the 1933 German film Hitler Youth Quex, Heini's father forces him to sing Die Internationale after he returns from a camping trip with the Hitler Youth.
• Both in Soviet poet Yevgeny Yevtushenko's 1961 poem Babiyy Yar as well as composer Dmitri Shostakovich's symphony incorporating its text, the Internationale is referenced: "Let the Internationale thunder, when the last anti-Semite on Earth is buried forever!".
• In David Lean's 1965 film adaptation of Doctor Zhivago, The Internationale is sang by a large crowd of civil protesters in 1913 Moscow.
• In the 1965 film The East Is Red, produced the year prior to the Cultural Revolution, the song is performed at the film's opening and in the last scene.
• In Federico Fellini's 1973 film Amarcord, the song is played on gramophone as part of a cruel prank to get an innocent person arrested by Fascists in 1930s Italy.
• In Warren Beatty's 1981 film Reds, the song is sung by protesting workers in St. Petersburg, over a montage of scenes depicting the Russian Revolution.
• In Alan Dean Foster's 1983 novel Spellsinger, the protagonist Jon-Tom sings the song to placate an enraged Marxist dragon.
• In Michael Cimino's 1987 film The Sicilian, the song is sung by Sicilian peasants right before the Portella della Ginestra massacre.
• In the 1994 film In the Heat of the Sun (阳光灿烂的日子) by Chinese director Jiang Wen, the song plays loudly over a brutal scene where the main character, Ma Xiaojun, repeatedly beats an innocent victim to a state of bloodied unconsciousness. The film is set during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976), when "The Internationale" was played at official events and at the end of each day's radio broadcast.
• Ken Loach used the Spanish version of this song in his 1995 movie Land and Freedom, set during the Spanish Civil War.
• In 1997 film Air Force One, the song is sung loudly when General Ivan Radek is released.
• The song played during the film The Beautician and the Beast.
• A Music box version of the song can be heard at the start and end of the music video for the Manic Street Preachers 1998 single If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next. The song deals with the topic of the Spanish Civil War and Anti-fascism in general. The single peaked at number 1 in the UK Singles Chart, the band's first single to do so.

External links

• The Internationale (2000 documentary) at IMDb
• Another large collection of downloadable recordings