The anthem is one of the three state symbols of any country in the modern world. Each nation has its own solemn musical piece. As a rule, the words of the anthem briefly reflect the essence of the state structure, political position, etc. The history of the Russian anthem vividly demonstrates how Russia was thrown from one extreme to another at certain historical boundaries.
The history of the anthem of the Russian Federation
For some time Russia did without the national anthem at all. Then the ceremonies for accepting overseas ambassadors and other events of a state nature were held under certain church chants. All this continued until the end of the 1780s. The time when the history of the Russian anthem began, can be considered the end of the reign of Emperor Peter I. It was then that the autocrat issued an order to perform the oratorio "Preobrazhensky March of Peter the Great" at all official state events. This made the Preobrazhensky March the most important and significant piece of music in the country.
"God save the king!" - the first anthem of Russia
The history of its creation dates back to after the end of the Patriotic War in 1812. Another name for this hymn is "The Prayer of the Russians". The words to this work were written by the famous Russian poet Vasily Andreevich Zhukovsky. Its very first performance fell on the celebration of the anniversary of the opening of the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum. In addition, the most significant event for the Russian anthem of that time was the touch of the Sun of Russian poetry - Alexander Pushkin to it.
In modern Russia, for desecration of its anthem, you can get a real prison term of up to one year or pay a fine of up to three hundred minimum wages.
The fact is that the great poet of Russia added two additional verses to the main words of Prayer of the Russians. This hymn was performed on the same solemn day on the occasion of the anniversary of the opening of the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum. This piece of music inspired Emperor Alexander I so much that he issued an order for the use of this anthem at all state events dedicated to the meetings of the Emperor. Since then, the work "God Save the Tsar!" was in the obligatory repertoire of the regimental orchestra.
In 1833, during the celebration of the anniversary of the victory of the Russian army over Napoleon, the history of the development and formation of the Russian anthem received its unexpected continuation. Now the piece of music "God Save the Tsar!" acquired the status of an official anthem. The words were rewritten by Prince Lvov. This hymn sounded until the abdication of the throne of Emperor Nicholas II in 1917. The leader of the world proletariat V. I. Lenin was not inspired by this piece of music. As a result, a decree was issued to replace this anthem with the Internationale. It was destined to exist for a short time. Already at the III Congress of Soviets, it was canceled.
The anthem of post-perestroika Russia was to be played to the music of Mikhail Glinka's Patriotic Song. As a result, the commission considered more than 6,000 texts sent from all over the country. None came up.
History of the modern anthem of Russia
The history of its development began in wartime: January 1, 1944. It was then that a piece of music by Mikhalkov and El-Registan called "The Union of Indestructible Republics of the Free" sounded on the radio. It was this hymn that began to be officially performed at various state ceremonies and solemn events from March 15, 1944 to December 11, 1993. After perestroika, the author of this hymn, Sergei Mikhalkov, rewrote his words to the music of Aleksandrov. In the end, the anthem of the Russian Federation was officially approved on March 24, 2001 after the signing of the corresponding decree by President V. V. Putin.
