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Polish religious and patriotic song From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Boże, coś Polskę is a Polish Catholic patriotic hymn. When Poland gained its independence in 1918, it competed with Mazurek Dąbrowskiego for the right to be the national anthem of Poland.[1] Its title is usually given as God Save Poland in English,[2] as a hint to God Save the King.[3] Literally it is translated as "Lord, who Poland..." from the first lines of the hymn "Boże! Coś Polskę przez tak liczne wieki / Otaczał blaskiem potęgi i chwały...", "Lord! Who for so many ages enclosed Poland with the light of power and glory...". Other translations of the title (and the text of the hymn) exist, such as "O Thou Lord God".[4]
The original text was authored by Alojzy Feliński published in Gazeta Warszawska on July 20, 1816, to the glory of the monarch of the Congress Kingdom of Poland, i.e., the Russian Emperor Alexander I, which since 1818 was known under the title Pieśń narodowa za pomyślność króla . It caused a good deal of controversy and already in the next year the last line of the refrain was unofficially sung as Naszą ojczyznę racz nam wrócić, Panie ("deign to give us back our homeland, Lord") instead of Naszego króla zachowaj nam Panie! ("Save our king for us, Lord"). Over time the text was subject to other changes. In February 1817 a hymn Hymn do Boga o zachowanie wolności (incipit: O Ty! którego potężna prawica...) by Antoni Gorecki was published. From the latter two stanzas were included into Boże, coś Polskę.[3]
The original text by Alojzy Feliński:[5][3]
Final version:[3]
From US congressional records:[6]
English version by Mary McDowell from Folk Songs of Many Peoples:[4]
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