National Anthem Act of 1980
The National Anthem Act of 1980 is a significant piece of legislation in Canada that officially designated "O Canada" as the national anthem. The anthem's origins trace back to 1880, when Calixa Lavallée composed the music and Adolphe-Basile Routhier penned the original French lyrics. Over the years, various English translations were attempted, with Robert Stanley Weir's 1908 version ultimately becoming the accepted English rendition. Despite earlier attempts to establish "O Canada" as the national anthem, legislative efforts faced challenges, including copyright issues and political priorities.
The push for official recognition of the anthem gained momentum in the early 1980s amid rising Canadian nationalism and the upcoming centenary of its composition. On June 18, 1980, a bill to make "O Canada" the national anthem was presented in the House of Commons, and after a swift legislative process, it received royal assent on July 1, 1980. The Act was part of a broader effort to reinforce national unity in Canada, particularly following a referendum on Québécois sovereignty. The passage of the National Anthem Act of 1980 not only solidified "O Canada" as a national symbol but also served to foster a sense of collective identity among Canadians.
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National Anthem Act of 1980
Identification Canadian federal legislation
Date Passed by Parliament on June 27, 1980
As a result of the National Anthem Act of 1980, “O Canada” became the official national anthem of Canada, one hundred years after it was first sung.
Calixa Lavallée (1842-1891) was a choirmaster at St. James Church, in Quebec City, when he was invited by the Saint Jean-Baptiste Association to write the music for a French Canadian national anthem. Adolphe-Basile Routhier, a prominent Quebec City lawyer and judge, was invited to write the words for the anthem, in French. The resulting composition, “Chant National,” received the official approval of Lieutenant Governor Théodore Robitaille. It was published as a national anthem in Quebec City by Arthur Lavigne in April, 1880. On June 24, the new anthem was both sung and played for the first time in public at a banquet held in Quebec City’s Pavillon des Patineurs (Skaters’ Pavilion), under the baton of Joseph Vezina. Among the more than five hundred guests in attendance was Queen Victoria’s son-in-law, Governor General the marquis of Lorne. Following that premiere performance, “Chant National” was performed frequently throughout French-speaking Canada. The first recorded occasion of it being played in English-speaking Canada was for the royal visit to Toronto, in 1901, of the duke of York and Cornwall (later King George V).
Several literal English translations of the four French verses were made over the first few decades of the anthem’s existence, but they were considered dull and uninspiring. Finally, in 1908, Robert Stanley Weir wrote new English lyrics to Lavallée’s melody. Though not a literal translation of the French lyrics, Weir’s verses impressed and moved enough Canadians that they became the accepted English version of the anthem, whose name became “O Canada.” Throughout the twentieth century, “O Canada” was often played together with “God Save the Queen,” the recognized royal Canadian anthem.
In 1927, an official version of “O Canada” was legally authorized for singing and performing in Canadian schools and at public functions. In 1942, an attempt was made to introduce a bill making “O Canada” the national anthem, but Prime MinisterWilliam Lyon Mackenzie King, feeling that the business of waging World War II took priority, refused to consider the bill’s passage in that year.
More attempts to pass legislation failed, partly as a result of legal objections by the holders of the song’s copyright, which the government finally acquired in 1970. On February 28, 1972, the secretary of state of Canada, Gerard Pelletier, unsuccessfully presented a bill in the House of Commons proposing the adoption of “O Canada” as the national anthem.
In the early 1980’s, Canadian nationalism was on the rise. In 1982, the Canada Act would patriate the country’s constitution, making Canada a fully autonomous nation for the first time. Moreover, 1980 was the centary of the song’s composition, and members of the House of Commons promised that it would become the official national anthem during its centenary year. Thus, on June 18, 1980, when another secretary of state, Francis Fox, presented a bill similar to those that had been defeated earlier, the timing finally seemed right. The bill was unanimously accepted by the House of Commons and the Senate on June 27; royal assent was given the same day. On July 1, Governor General Edward Schreyer proclaimed the National Anthem Act of 1980. To commemorate the bill’s expected passage, as well as the anthem’s centenary, the Canadian government issued two special postage stamps on June 18, 1980.
Impact
When the 1980 National Anthem Bill was debated in the House of Commons, all three House Leaders agreed to facilitate the adoption of the bill by limiting the debate, during second reading, to one speaker for each party. They also agreed that no amendments could be proposed to the English version of the anthem. The sense of urgency that had developed around the bill stemmed from a collective unease about a lack of national unity in the wake of the referendum over Québécois sovereignty that had occurred in May of that year. The act was thus passed in part because the federal government felt it was necessary to shore up national symbols that could help bind the country together.
Bibliography
Hang, Xing, ed. Encyclopedia of National Anthems. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow, 2003.
Lavallée, Calixa. “O Canada”: A National Song for Every Canadian. Toronto: Whaley, Royde, 1930.
“O Canada”: Our National Anthem. Markham, Ont.: North Winds Press, 2003.
Powers, Eugenia. “’O Canada’: Shan’t Be Chant.” Performing Arts and Entertainment in Canada 28, no. 2 (Summer, 1993).