Domine salvum fac regem
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Domine, salvum fac regem (Lord, save the King) is a motet which was sung as a de facto royal anthem in France during the Ancien Régime.
The text is taken from the Vulgate translation of Psalm 19, and while its use already existed in medieval France, the motet was composed by Jean Mouton for the coronation of King François I at 1515. It was put to music as a grand motet by Jean-Baptiste Lully, Marin Marais, François Couperin, Henry Desmarest, Michel-Richard Delalande, Louis-Nicolas Clérambault and was made customary at the end of every Mass at the Chapel of Versailles. Marc-Antoine Charpentier has composed 24 Domine salvum fac regem (H.281 to H.305).
Following the conquest of Quebec, the Catholic population began to sing the prayer for the British monarch, and from there it spread to Catholics in England where it was sung at the end of the principal Mass on Sunday until the liturgical reforms of 1969 (a custom still done in communities that celebrate the Tridentine Mass).
Lyrics[]
The original lyrics were written in Latin.
Domine salvum fac regem |
Lord, save our King |
See also[]
- God save the Queen, one of the songs inspired by the anthem.
- The Prayer of Russians, for an anthem-prayer for the Tsar of Russia.
External links[]
- Ancien Régime in France
- European anthems
- French anthems
- French monarchy
- Historical national anthems
- Royal anthems
- French patriotic songs