"Schwertlied (Du Schwert an meiner Linken)"
by Arion Brooklyn
Poet and soldier Karl Theodor Körner
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Columbia's series of German hymns, issued for the benefit of the Austrian Red Cross between 1915 and 1917, featured, among others, the militant spirit of the Schwertlied (Sword Song) which swelled Prussian chests. Die Eisenbraut, or "The Iron Bride" as it is most properly known, reflected the Prussian, and therefore the German, ideal—the spirit of the sword. Sung by an all-male, a cappella choir, the hymn (with lyrics by Karl Theodor Körner and music by Carl Maria Von Weber) invokes the history of German warfare and the lore of Prussian arms with the story of the Iron Bride—the sword who stands on the left of the bridegroom soldier and strengthens, enlivens, and protects him:
Du Schwert an meiner Linken,
Was soll dein heitres Blinken?
Schaust mich so freundlich an,
Hab' meine Freude dran!
Hurra! Hurra! Hurra!
'Mich trägt ein wachrer Reiter,
Drum Blink ich auch so heiter.
Bin Freien Mannes Wehr,
Das Freut dem Schwerte Sehr.'
Hurra! Hurra! Hurra!
Ja, gutes Schwert, frei bin ich
Und liebe dich herzinnig,
Als wärst du mir getraut
Als meine liebe Braut.
Hurra! Hurra! Hurra!
Erst tat es an der Linken
Nur ganz verstohlen blinken,
Doch an der rechten traut
Gott sichtbarlich die Braut.
Hurra! Hurra! Hurra!
Nun laßt das Liebchen singen,
Daß helle Funken springen!
Der Hochzeitsmorgen graut.
Hurra! Du Eisenbraut!
Hurra! Hurra! Hurra!
The production of these recordings reflected the depth of the German influence in the United States and the economic stability of a people who were able to indulge in the luxury of recorded music and, in the same stroke, subsidize the Austrian Red Cross. In the period between the 1910 census and 1917, there were over 500,000 German-Americans in the United States and there were nearly 10 million who were foreign-born, in the countries of the Central Powers. One in three Americans had either been born "Over There" or had a parent still living there. There were German language newspapers in any municipality of any size and foreign language presses in any language where a population demanded it—in fact the German propaganda machine tried to use that network of newspapers to keep the U.S. neutral. When the Kaiser addressed his troops decamping for the front, it was headline news in the German language newspapers of the United States, and when he exhorted the people and troops of Germany, it is not unlikely that he believed that he was exhorting HIS people, wherever they might be. To the troops, Kaiser Wilhelm said: "Remember that the German People are the chosen of God. On Me, the German Emperor, the spirit of God has descended. I am the sword, his weapon, and his vice regent. Woe to the disobedient, and death to cowards and unbelievers" (NY Times, "Current History of the War," Vol. I, p. 341).
The Kaiser was Die Eisenbraut , God's instrument on Earth, and the leader of a proud, loyal people. The records sold well. The Columbia series was very successful until the U.S. declaration of war. At the commencement of hostilities, production of the series was terminated, all stockpiles were destroyed and the masters sent to Europe for distribution. Columbia wanted no question of its loyalties to the U.S. and they didn't want to take the loss for an unsaleable product.
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