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. Fol-
lowing 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 Stan-
ley Weir wrote new English lyrics to Lavallée’s mel-
ody. 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 Can-
ada.” Throughout the twentieth century, “O Can-
ada” was often played together with “God Save the
Queen,” the recognized royal Canadian anthem.
In 1927, an official version of “O Canada” was le-
gally authorized for singing and performing in Ca-
nadian schools and at public functions. In 1942, an
attempt was made to introduce a bill making “O Can-
ada” the national anthem, but Prime Minister Wil-
liam Lyon Mackenzie King, feeling that the business
of waging World War II took priority, refused to con-
sider 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
- On February 28, 1972, the secretary of state of
Canada, Gerard Pelletier, unsuccessfully presented
a bill in the House of Commons proposing the adop-
tion 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 auton-
omous 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 cen-
tenary year. Thus, on June 18, 1980, when another
secretary of state, Francis Fox, presented a bill simi-
lar to those that had been defeated earlier, the tim-
ing 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 pro-
claimed the National Anthem Act of 1980. To com-
memorate the bill’s expected passage, as well as the
anthem’s centenary, the Canadian government is-
sued 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 ver-
sion of the anthem. The sense of urgency that had
developed around the bill stemmed from a collec-
tive 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.
Further Reading
Hang, Xing, ed.Encyclopedia of National Anthems.
Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow, 2003.
Lavallée, Calixa.“O Canada”: A National Song for Ev-
er y 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 Canada28,
no. 2 (Summer, 1993).
Martin J. ManningSee also Canada and the British Commonwealth;
Music; Trudeau, Pierre.The Eighties in America National Anthem Act of 1980 691