Jerusalem vs God save the Queen - which is the better 'England' national anthem?

[Superseagull69]

GSTQ as it is our National Anthem. To me Jerusalem is a song taught at school with no national significance.

Actually GSTQ is the United Kindom national Anthem.
I do believe the ENGLISH national Anthem is Land of Hope & Glory.

So as Scotland, Wales & Northern Ireland are part of the United Kingdom, it annoys me that people think the English should sing the UK anthem & ignore the ENGLISH one, just as much as it annoys me the English seem to celebrate Paddy day but ignore our own St Georges day.

Rant over

BTW I didn't vote on the poll as I don't believe either of these should be sung ...

 

[cardboard]

I was at Wembley on Saturday and the national anthem was so cringeworthy, hardly anyone singing it and as previous posters have said its a complete dirge of a song.
I'm with others in the respect that i won't and don't want to sing about a person, i want to sing about my country as per every other nation on earth. The sooner we get this the better IMO

 

[Mo Gosfield]

'I vow to thee my country ' is beautiful but the winner for me is......
' There'll always be an England
Where there's a country lane
Wherever there's a cottage small
Beside a field of grain
There'll always be an England
While there's a busy street
Wherever there's a turning wheel
A million marching feet......
.......
There'll always be an England
And England shall be free
If England means as much to you
As England means to me.....

Beat that...stirring...patriotic...hairs on the back of yer neck stuff.

 

[Hamilton]

Anything but that dreary GSTQ

 

[Brovion]

'I vow to thee my country ' is beautiful but the winner for me is......
' There'll always be an England
Where there's a country lane
Wherever there's a cottage small
Beside a field of grain
There'll always be an England
While there's a busy street
Wherever there's a turning wheel
A million marching feet......
.......
There'll always be an England
And England shall be free
If England means as much to you
As England means to me.....

Beat that...stirring...patriotic...hairs on the back of yer neck stuff.

Oooh good call. I hereby change my vote. (We'll have to drop that middle 8 though: "And Empire too, We can depend on you!")

 

[Left Footer]

it should be land of hope and glory , sends a shiver down the spine when they sing it at the last night of the proms.

 

[fat old seagull]

Oooh good call. I hereby change my vote. (We'll have to drop that middle 8 though: "And Empire too, We can depend on you!")

I also agree with that... much more meaningful. And if it could be sung to 'Gangham Style' all the better.

 

[Simster]

Why? Just because it is traditional?

You'd have to be a total idiot to even ask this question. A national anthem is supposed to unite a nation. Ours alienates the one third who are republicans and the significant number who don't believe in God. And it sounds dreadful.

It's a terrible national anthem. The French, Germans and Americans all have properly uplifting anthems. Where's ours?

 

[Not Andy Naylor]

You'd have to be a total idiot to even ask this question. A national anthem is supposed to unite a nation. Ours alienates the one third who are republicans and the significant number who don't believe in God. And it sounds dreadful.

It's a terrible national anthem. The French, Germans and Americans all have properly uplifting anthems. Where's ours?

I wholeheartedly agree with this (plus the fact that it is the anthem of the UK and not England, see the OP) and the sentiments expressed earlier by Lord Bracknell.

It's a plodding dirge and moreover, while I am sure the Queen is a pleasant old dear, she'd be a very long way down the list of any people I'd want God to save (if he/she exists). Probably even behind Ernest.

 

[The Wizard]

England's anthem should be Jerusalem, it's not even a question for me but it won't be changed for whatever reasons. Poll is overwhelmingly in favour, 84% to 16%

Edit: I also like Land of hope and glory actually, would be more of a decision between that and Jerusalem for me but then I hate GSTQ

 

[father_and_son]

Politics aside, GSTQ IS a dirge. Even patriotic royalists say so.

Something with a bit of umph is what we need.

This sums it up for me.

The ENGLAND team should have something which is:
1. Unique to England - so not GSTQ
2. Is a rousing call to arms - so not GSTQ, officially the most unrousing tune ever
3. Is well known enough that it can be sung by the majority of the crowd

To me this leaves us with Jerusalem or, possibly, Land of Hope & Glory.

 

[father_and_son]

Billy Connolly had this right!

(And I challenge you to read this and not read it in his accent!)
This country is in a terrible state, according to some people, and I know why. Now you'd blamed it on lot of things, on all unemployment and the value of the pound and all sorts of other magic things. It's because the national anthem is boring. No, no, don't get me wrong, I'm not arguing with the lyrics. Well, I am. But not them all. I mean, I think the Queen should be saved, I think it's a great idea. And if anybody is gonna save her, God is the very chap. Who am I to rock the boat. Not I, nice person, showbusiness personality. Is a appalling song, and it's racist, and it's anti-Scottish. The fourth verse is all about Marshal Wade coming up, to give us a belt in the mouth. And I don't like it. "And with a mighty rush, rebellious scots to crush." Oh, do you bloody think so? I don't see any rush to Hamden to crush anybody. I rest my case.

No. You see, if you have been looking at the olympic games, we come in with the flag. Daaahhh-daaahhh-daaaahhh-daaaahhh-dah-daahhhh. We are being lapped. The games haven't even started yet. Daaahhh-daaahhh-daaaahhh-daaaahhh-dah-daahhhh. The emerging nations are coming: Ra-ta-ta-da-ta-ta. "We come from Jeblovia, and we don't give a shit." "We've got a national debt of 50 squillion pounds. And we don't give a [monkey's ]." "Gooood saaave..." All the other nations don't want us to win, cause when we win it take half an hour to get the flag up the bloody pole. "oooour graaaacious..." No wonder Daley Thompson scratched under it... Seizing up. So I think it's time for a change. And I think a refreshing change would be to use the theme from The Archers. "Dom-da-dom-da-dom-da-dom-la-la-lah-la-laah-laah...." Can you imagine it. Trooping of the colour. The Queen sitting on a horse, like that. (Highpitched) "La-la-lah-la-lah-la-lah...." And then the public in the seats go "Rom-tee-diddeley-dom-rom-tee-diddely-dom." So let's give it a bash here. On, two, three... Just think... now that's gonna be the lyrics. We are not gonna change a thing, it's gonna be. "Rom-tee-rom-tee-dom-tee-dom..." Just think, the new immigrants can learn it on the bus on the way in from Heathrow. "Rom-tee-rom-tee-dom-tee-dom..." How would you feel as a new immigrant, getting of the bus. "do you know the bloody national anthem?" "La-la-lah-la-lah-la-lah..."

 

[Phat Baz 68]

Both crap and one is a religious Hymn
FFS !!!

 

[ThePompousPaladin]

... and one is a religious Hymn

It may be widely seen as a religious hymn now, but it isn't.

Blake wasn't a friend of the church or religion, he saw them as hypocritical, part of a system of oppression.

This is a quote from wiki:
'Reverent of the Bible but hostile to the Church of England (indeed, to all forms of organised religion), Blake was influenced by the ideals and ambitions of the French and American Revolutions.'

Now read the lyrics with that in mind....Not saying you'll like it any better, but it's an anti establishment call to arms. Which is why it's an unlikely choice for 'national anthem'.
God i love Blake, visionary and far ahead of his time.

 

[DavidinSouthampton]

What's confusing, Benn's son covets the peerage his multi millionaire socialist old man rejected so he can sit in an unelected chamber on behalf of a supposed socialist party. A party that is ideologically opposed to hereditary entitlement........if they had any integrity and honour they would reject this move by Benn but they haven't.

But then it's not like this hypocrisy is unique to the political Benn dynasty..........

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10590102

Still what can you expect from a man that plays croquet.........

So you could well be talking about just one member of the family - not the dynasty.

And what is wrong with croquet? It's a really good - and vicious on occasion - game.

 

[DavidinSouthampton]

It may be widely seen as a religious hymn now, but it isn't.

Blake wasn't a friend of the church or religion, he saw them as hypocritical, part of a system of oppression.

This is a quote from wiki:
'Reverent of the Bible but hostile to the Church of England (indeed, to all forms of organised religion), Blake was influenced by the ideals and ambitions of the French and American Revolutions.'

Now read the lyrics with that in mind....Not saying you'll like it any better, but it's an anti establishment call to arms. Which is why it's an unlikely choice for 'national anthem'.
God i love Blake, visionary and far ahead of his time.

As a (non Anglican) preacher, I have used it on occasion, and would normally point out what it is about. I actually posted the words of the final verse somewhere above in this thread.

 

[Dave the OAP]

If we are talking about anthems, the Italian one is IMHO the best one out there....but coming from the land of Puccini, to be honest what would you expect. I love the way the anthem starts off in jolly little ditty mode, and the. Half way through changes to become a rollicking marching song. FORZA ITALIA

Jerusalem is a bit too public school for me, I vow to thee my country is excellent and was played at lady di's funeral ( gawd bless her) , I would be happy with that. Land of hope and glory the same.

Give me joy in my heart keep me ENGLISH
Give me joy in my heart I pray
Give me joy in my heart keep me ENGLISH
Keep me English till my dying day.
No surrender
No surrender
No surrender to the Cheese eating surrender monkeys. Etc

 

[Brovion]

"There were ten German bombers in the air ..."

 

[Dave the OAP]

"There were ten German bombers in the air ..."

The winner

 

[Dick Knights Mumm]

If we are talking about anthems, the Italian one is IMHO the best one out there....but coming from the land of Puccini, to be honest what would you expect.

It has to go something to beat La Marseillaise. That has me storming the barricades.

Then you hear our joyless dirge .....................