French National Anthem

The French National Anthem "La Marseillaise" is about five minutes long and all the lyrics are very military-based because of how it describes the enemies and tyrannies of France falling to the army and citizens of France but the anthem also is a symbol of the nation uniting and coming together to defeat the enemies because of the lyrics using words that refer to all the people of the nation like "our", "let's", "citizens", and "your". This anthem in my opinion is very catchy and put together well and sounds very nice with a whole orchestra used to perform it, but it is nothing like the American National Anthem. The American anthem unlike the French anthem does not focus much on killing off the enemies, but instead that when we talk about our flag still flying in the wind, we talk about America always standing tall and not being taken down no matter what. Both anthems try to deliver the idea of nation-pride and never giving into an enemy but in very different ways.


In English:

 Let's go children of the fatherland,
The day of glory has arrived!
Against us tyranny's
Bloody flag is raised! (repeat)
In the countryside, do you hear
The roaring of these fierce soldiers?
They come right to our arms
To slit the throats of our sons, our friends!

Refrain

Grab your weapons, citizens!
Form your batallions!
Let us march! Let us march!
May impure blood
Water our fields!

More
La Marseillaise en français

Listen to la Marseillaise

Bastille Day article

Bastille Day online games

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This horde of slaves, traitors, plotting kings,
What do they want?
For whom these vile shackles,
These long-prepared irons? (repeat)
Frenchmen, for us, oh! what an insult!
What emotions that must excite!
It is us that they dare to consider
Returning to ancient slavery!

What! These foreign troops
Would make laws in our home!
What! These mercenary phalanxes
Would bring down our proud warriors! (repeat)
Good Lord! By chained hands
Our brows would bend beneath the yoke!
Vile despots would become
The masters of our fate!

Tremble, tyrants! and you, traitors,
The disgrace of all groups,
Tremble! Your parricidal plans
Will finally pay the price! (repeat)
Everyone is a soldier to fight you,
If they fall, our young heros,
France will make more,
Ready to battle you!

Frenchmen, as magnanimous warriors,
Bear or hold back your blows!
Spare these sad victims,
Regretfully arming against us. (repeat)
But not these bloodthirsty despots,
But not these accomplices of Bouillé,
All of these animals who, without pity,
Tear their mother's breast to pieces!

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Sacred love of France,
Lead, support our avenging arms!
Liberty, beloved Liberty,
Fight with your defenders! (repeat)
Under our flags, let victory
Hasten to your manly tones!
May your dying enemies
See your triumph and our glory!

Refrain

We will enter the pit
When our elders are no longer there;
There, we will find their dust
And the traces of their virtues. (repeat)
Much less eager to outlive them
Than to share their casket,
We will have the sublime pride
Of avenging them or following them!

Refrain