Nemzeti Orgona Regiszter Programmes About Us Curiosities Tenders
hu
Individual concerts OperaCinema
14.12.2022
Croatia’s national anthem
‘Our Beautiful Homeland’ has swept the country for hundreds of years.

‘Our Beautiful Homeland’ has swept the country for hundreds of years, but was only made Croatia’s official anthem in the 1970s. Croatia’s national anthem, ‘Lijepa naša domovino’ (‘Our Beautiful Homeland’), sings of the country’s beauty and glory, and a deep love of the natural land. The lyrics originate from a poem, ‘Horvatska domovina’ (‘Croatian homeland’), written by Antun Mihanović in 1835. Just over a decade later in 1846, Austrian composer Josip Runjanin set the words to a melody, supposedly inspired by the recitative ‘Ah! O sole, più ratto’ from Donizetti’s opera Lucia di Lammermoor. Runjanin’s army bandmaster, Josip Wendl, later repurposed the music for a military brass orchestra. The song was only adopted as Croatia’s official national anthem in 1972, among other amendments to the Constitution of Croatia.

More curiosities
13.03.2024
Night of the organs in Budapest
More
11.12.2023
Silent Night
The song was sung simultaneously in French, English, and German by troops during the Christmas truce...
More
08.12.2023
Chopin’s Christmas music
But what did these musicians get up to during the festive season? And how did it inspire their work?
More
07.09.2023
José Cura: It takes time to grow from a tiny seed into a huge tree
Exclusive interview with the world-famous artist
More