France National Anthem — La Marseillaise

"La Marseillaise" is a revolutionary war song, and its meaning is unmistakably martial. The first verse warns that tyranny's "bloody banner" has been raised and that ferocious soldiers are coming to harm citizens' families — a rallying cry to defend the young Republic.

The famous refrain, "Aux armes, citoyens" ("To arms, citizens"), turns fear into collective action: form your battalions and march. Its vivid, violent imagery has made it both a stirring symbol of liberty and, at times, a subject of debate — but its power as a call to unity and resistance is undisputed.

Rouget de Lisle wrote the song in a single night in April 1792 as a marching song for the Army of the Rhine. It earned its name after being sung by volunteers from Marseille as they entered Paris. The full song has seven verses, but the first verse and refrain are what is sung today.

"La Marseillaise" has echoed through French history and beyond — from the Revolution to the Liberation of Paris, and famously in the film Casablanca. It remains a global shorthand for liberty and resistance, sung at moments of national mourning and celebration alike.

"La Marseillaise" is the national anthem of France, among the most famous of all national anthems. Both the words and the music were written by army officer Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle in Strasbourg in 1792.

It was first adopted as the national anthem by the Convention in 1795, and — after periods out of favour — permanently reinstated in 1879. As an 18th-century work, it is in the public domain.