Details of petition:
Submitted by Ben Mortimer
We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to Formally acknowledge Blake/Parry's Hymn 'Jerusalem' as the anthem for England in the same vein as 'Oh Flower of Scotland' has been accepted as the anthem for Scotland.
"It is absurd that, in a Nation made up of semi-independent Countries, England does not have an anthem. For that reason I propose The hymn by William Blake and Hubert Parry, also known as 'And did Those Feet' be acknowledged as our anthem."
The PM's Response:
The national anthem of the UK 'God Save the Queen' only has that status by convention. It has no official status either by legislation or royal proclamation. Similarly, 'Flower of Scotland', although it is regarded in some quarters as the Scottish national anthem, has no official status. Insofar as a anthem for England is concerned, 'Land of Hope and Glory' is often played when England play in sporting competitions (such as the Commonwealth Games) against other countries of the UK. However, this too has no official standing. The Government has no plans to legislate on this issue.
So it's up to the event organisers to choose the anthem. Let's hope they use some common sense in the future.
1 comment:
That's more than interesting. As for Jerusalem, it would complete the package - we already have a foreign saint. And not many nations have insanity as its lyrics. Insanity is here defined as stating an obvious absurdity as a fervent belief.
Yes, Jerusalem is a fine choice - the Emerson Lake and Palmer version would be best.
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