| German: italic=no|Oben am jungen Rhein | |
| English Title: | High on the young Rhine |
| Prefix: | National |
| Country: | Liechtenstein |
| Composer: | Unknown composer (uses the melody of "God Save the King") |
| Author: | Jakob Josef Jauch |
| Lyrics Date: | 1850s |
| Adopted: | c. 1870 (official 1920; modified in 1963) |
| Sound: | Oben am jungen Rhein, by the U.S. Navy Band.ogg |
| Sound Title: | U.S. Navy Band instrumental version (one verse) |
"German: italic=no|Oben am jungen Rhein" (pronounced as /de/; "High on the young Rhine") is the national anthem of Liechtenstein. Written in the 1850s, it is set to the melody of the British anthem, "God Save the King", which in the 19th century had been used for a number of anthems of German-speaking nations, including those of Prussia, Bavaria, Saxony, and Switzerland.
The original lyrics, beginning Oberst am jungen Rhein, were written in the 1850s. The song may be grouped with the German "Rhine songs", i.e. songs that celebrate the River Rhine as part of the German national patrimony, opposing the French territorial claims on the left river bank.
The text is attributed to Jakob Josef Jauch (1802–1859).[1] Born in Saratov, Russia to Swiss Catholic family from Uri, Jauch studied theology in Lucerne and Chur during 1828 - 1832, and was consecrated as priest in 1833. He served as priest in London during 1837/8 - 1850. During 1852 - 1856, he lived in Balzers, Liechtenstein, and befriended Princess Franziska, with whom he planned a model educational institution in Balzers. Due to his progressive stance, Jauch came into conflict with the church hierarchy, and the bishop of Chur ordered him to leave Liechtenstein in 1856. If the attribution of the lyrics to Jauch is correct, the composition would likely date to Jauch's time in Balzers (1852 - 1856).
The lyrics were not published during Jauch's lifetime. They appeared in print, as the national anthem of Liechtenstein (Die Liechtenstein'sche National-Hymne) only after a period of oral transmission, in 1875, so that the tradition of Jauch's authorship, or the original form of his lyrics, cannot be verified.[2] The song served as Liechtenstein's unofficial, de facto national anthem from the 1870s until its official adoption in 1920.
In 1963, the text was shortened, and reference to the "German Rhine", which had been introduced in the 1920 version, was removed.[3] Oben am jungen Rhein is the only remaining national anthem sharing the same melody with the British "God Save the King" (since the replacement of the Swiss Rufst du, mein Vaterland in 1961).[4] [5]
Usually, the first and last verses are sung.