Wenn alle untreu werden
| "Wenn alle untreu werden" | |
|---|---|
| Song | |
| Language | German |
| Published | 1814 |
| Songwriter(s) | Max von Schenkendorf |
"Wenn alle untreu werden, so bleiben wir doch treu" (If all become unfaithful, we remain loyal) is the opening line of a famous patriotic German popular song written by Max von Schenkendorf in 1814. Schenkendorf dedicated the song to Friedrich Ludwig Jahn for the "holy German Empire".
The melody was a slightly modified form of Pour aller à la chasse faut être matineux, a French hunting song dating from 1724.
The title also refers to a German hymn of the same name, written by the German poet Novalis in 1799. The first two lines of this hymn are the same as in Schenkendorf's song.[1]
Gerhard Roßbach included the song in the activities of his German Youth Movement in which "its emphasis on loyalty in adversity and faith in Germany precisely fit Roßbach's desire to unify conservative forces behind a project of political and cultural renewal."[2] During the Third Reich the song was used extensively by the Nazi SS, and became known as Treuelied (song of faithfulness).
Lyrics
Wenn Alle untreu werden, so bleiben wir doch treu: |
If all become unfaithful, we remain loyal |
References
- ^ "Novalis, Gedichte, Geistliche Lieder, 6. Wenn alle untreu werden". Zeno.org. Retrieved 2012-03-14.
- ^ Celia Applegate, Pamela Maxine Potter (eds), Music and German National Identity, 2002, University of Chicago Press, p.136
- ^ Freye Stimmen frischer Jugend. Durch Adolf Ludwig Follen. Jena, 1819, p. 41 as "Erneuter Schwur, an den Jahn, vonwegen des heiligen teutschen Reiches." Google]).
Note: It is different in, for example, the following sources:- Liederbuch des deutschen Volkes. Leipzig, 1843, p. 280 as "Das alte Reich"
- Deutschlands Dichter von 1813 bis 1843. Eine Auswahl von 872 charakteristischen Gedichten aus 131 Dichtern, mit biographisch-literarischen Bemerkungen und einer einleitenden Abhandlung über die technische Bildung poetischer Formen. by Karl Gödeke. Hannover, 1844, p. 343 as "Erneuter Schwur. Junius 1814. An Friedrich Ludwig Jahn."
- Auswahl deutscher Lieder mit ein- und mehrstimmigen Weisen. 8th edition, Leipzig, 1858, pp. 55f. as "Erneuter Schwur von wegen des heiligen deutschen Reichs. – An Jahn", with notes for the melody