ENGLISH ANTHEM. After the death of Queen Elizabeth II and the accession to the throne of her son, Charles III, the national anthem “God save the Queen” became “God save the King”.
[Updated September 19, 2022 6:40 PM] “God Save the King!” A change of monarch, change of anthem. After the death of Queen Elizabeth II on Thursday September 8, the British will have to change a 70-year-old habit. The traditional God Save The Queen, sung in homage to the Queen since 1952, is now followed by the God Save The King, solemnly sung since the death of Elizabeth II. For ten days, during the various events of this royal funeral, like this Monday, September 19 in Westminster Abbey where the last farewell to Queen Elizabeth takes place, the British have had to get used to replacing Queen with King.
All the lyrics of the anthem have been masculinized, to pay homage to the now King of England, Charles III. Also note that God Save The King is one of the two national anthems of New Zealand, but also the royal anthem in Australia and Canada, two countries which have a national anthem different from this song. After the death of Elizabeth II, the God Save The Queen, sung since February 6, 1952, the date of the Queen’s accession to the throne, once again became the God Save The King known during the reign of her father, George VI, i.e. a song adopted as the national anthem in 1745.
May God protect our gracious King, Long live our noble King, May God protect the King! Make him victorious, Happy and glorious; Long may his reign over us, May God protect the King!
O Lord, our God, arise, Scatter his enemies And cause them to fall; Confound their plots, Outwit their trickster conspiracies! In You we put our hope; May God protect us all!
Please pour upon him Your most precious gifts; May he reign long; May he defend our laws And always prove us right To sing with heart and with a loud voice: May God protect the King!
