"The Anacreontic Song", also known by its incipit "To Anacreon in Heaven", was the official song of the Anacreontic Society, an 18th-century gentlemen's club of amateur musicians in London, England, United Kingdom. Attributed to the composer John Stafford Smith, the tune was later used by several writers as a setting for their patriotic lyrics. These included two songs by Francis Scott Key, most famously his poem, "Defence of Fort McHenry". The latter combination became known as "The Star-Spangled Banner" and was adopted as the national anthem of the United States in 1931.
"To Anacreon in Heaven" in The Two Georges[]
In 1995, Colonel Thomas Bushell reflected how the North American Union's national hymn was set to the tune of the old English drinking song "To Anacreon in Heaven", when it, and "God Save the King," were played at a Russian Embassy reception announcing the arrival of Governor-General Sir Martin Luther King.[1]
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- ↑ The Two Georges, pg. 451, MPB, pg. 294, HC.
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