IT is a piece of music nearly 300 years old, traditionally played during moments of national pride, but there are calls at this momentous marker in history for "Rule, Britannia!" to be played no more.
Rule, Britannia!
The song is based on a poem by Scots poet, James Thomson, born in Roxburghshire in 1700. It was set to music in 1740 by English composer Thomas Arne, proving instantly popular, in tune with a nation trying to expand and “rule the waves”, as the lyrics say. The song was originally part of Arne's "masque" - a form of 16th and 17th century entertainment involving, unsurprisingly, masks and verse - performed to the then Prince of Wales to mark the ascension of his grandfather, King George I and the birth of his daughter.
Remind me…?
Strongly associated with the Royal Navy and the British Empire, lyrics include: "The nations, not so blest as thee, must, in their turns, to tyrants fall. While thou shalt flourish great and free, The dread and envy of them all. Rule, Britannia! rule the waves. Britons never will be slaves."
In recent times?
Notably in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement, focus on the song's links to colonialism and slavery has led to calls for it to be retired. In September 2020, the BBC had said it would not have "Rule, Britannia!" sung at The Last Night of the Proms, sparking even a Prime Ministerial intervention such was the backlash, with Boris Johnson saying: "I think it's time we stopped our cringing embarrassment about our history, about our traditions and about our culture, and we stopped this general bout of self-recrimination and wetness.” Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said: "Confident forward-looking nations don't erase their history, they add to it.”
Then?
The BBC reversed its decision, saying its original plan to perform only orchestral versions of both Rule, Britannia! and Land of Hope and Glory was inspired by Covid-19 restrictions and the songs were duly sung in a socially-distanced manner.
Now?
Mark De Lisser, who co-hosts “Our Dementia Choir”, regularly presents “Songs of Praise”, is the vocal coach on “Masked Singer” and conducts the children’s choir for “Children in Need”, thinks that in the wake of the Queen’s passing, the patriotic song should now never be sung again.
What did he say?
“It will take a little time to get our heads around singing God Save The King”, De Lesser said, “though I’m sure we will continue to mistakenly say Queen as it’s been all most of us have ever known…But Rule Britannia should never be sung again. Confined to the history song books forever. It was written in a time when colonialism was the name of the game and this is the bleak history of the UK which we should never forget, but always seek to make it right for the current time and society. So it should never be sung again in any public setting. King Charles III should make this happen.”
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