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Rota (Oath) is one of the anti-German Polish national songs of the 20th century.
The lyrics were composed in 1908 by Maria Konopnicka, and the music was added two years later by Feliks Nowowiejski. Konopnicka's poem was a protest against Prussian legislation that introduced a gradual expropriation of Polish landowners in the Prussian partition of Poland (Polish lands that were under Prussian occupation from 1795 to 1918).
The song, first performed publicly during a patriotic demonstration at Kraków in 1910, instantly became popular all over partitioned Poland. Until 1918 it served as an anthem of the Polish Scouting movement. After Poland regained independence in 1918, the Oath in 1927 became a (finally unsuccessful) candidate to be the Polish national anthem.
| Polish | English |
| Nie rzucim ziemi, skąd nasz ród. | We will not abandon the land of our clan. |
| Nie damy pogrześć mowy. | We will not allow our language to be buried. |
| Polski my naród, polski lud, | We are the Polish nation, the Polish people, |
| Królewski szczep Piastowy. | The royal tribe of the Piasts. |
| Nie damy, by nas zgnębił wróg. | We will not allow the enemy to repress us. |
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| Tak nam dopomóż Bóg! | So help us God! |
| Tak nam dopomóż Bóg | So help us God |
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| Do krwi ostatniej kropli z żył | To the last drop of blood in our veins |
| Bronić bedziemy ducha, | We will defend our soul |
| Aż się rozpadnie w proch i w pył | Until into ashes and dust |
| Krzyżacka zawierucha. | The Teutonic storm collapses. |
| Twierdzą nam będzie każdy próg. | Every doorstep shall be our fortress. |
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| Tak nam dopomóż Bóg! | So help us God! |
| Tak nam dopomóż Bóg | So help us God |
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| Nie będzie Niemiec pluł nam w twarz | The German will not spit in our face, |
| Ni dzieci nam germanił, | Nor will he Germanize our children, |
| Orężny wstanie hufiec nasz, | Our battalion will armed arise, |
| Duch będzie nam hetmanił. | And the spirit will be our commander. |
| Pójdziem, gdy zabrzmi złoty róg. | We will go when the golden horn calls. |
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| Tak nam dopomóż Bóg! | So help us God! |
| Tak nam dopomóż Bóg | So help us God |
See also
External links
"Rota" in Real Audio formatPolish national symbols | Polish poems | 1910 songs | Rota (Maria Konopnicka)
"Rota (poem)"