The Past Is Always Present: “Rule, Britannia!”

By Brian E. Strayer As every loyal subject of His Majesty Charles III knows, the British national anthem is “God Save the King.” When this song is played or sung, everyone present except the Sovereign must stand at attention. But long before this anthem became popular throughout the British Empire, another song took pride of place. When Admiral Edward Vernon (1684-1757) captured Porto Bello (from where the Spanish treasure fleet embarked for Spain) in December 1739 (during the bloody but short-lived War of Jenkin’s Ear), England went wild with celebrations. Having been humiliated by Spanish depredations, they hungered for an English victory. Fireworks and bonfires lit the skies of cities from London to York. For a party at Cliveden, the country mansion of Frederick, Prince of Wales, the composer James Thomson wrote a martial ditty that remains Great Britain’s unofficial anthem to this day. “Rule, Britannia! Britannia rule the waves!

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