Robert Stanley Weir
Encyclopedia
Robert Stanley Weir, FRSC, (November 15, 1856–August 20, 1926) was a Montreal
, Quebec
judge and poet most famous for writing the English lyrics to O Canada
, the national anthem
of Canada
. He was educated as a teacher and lawyer and considered one of the leading experts of the day on Quebec's municipal
civil law
. He was appointed a municipal court judge and a judge for the Exchequer Court of Canada
.
Weir published several individual poems in magazines and collections in books. His lyrics for the English version of O Canada eclipsed many others' lyrical attempts and songs to quickly become the most popular patriotic
song in Canada for the past century.
, Canada West, the son of William Park Weir and Helen Craig Smith, who had emigrated
from Scotland
to Canada in 1852. Weir moved to Montreal, Quebec
with his family as an infant, where his father became a Surveyor of Customs
in the Port of Montreal
. His brother, William Alexander Weir
, was born there and would later become a Cabinet
Minister in the Legislative Assembly of Quebec
.
Weir studied at McGill Normal School, Montreal, and at the age of 19, was appointed principal of Sherbrooke Street School, one of the newest and largest Montreal public schools at the time. He continued his studies at McGill University
earning his Bachelor of Civil Law
in 1880 and a Doctor of Civil Law
in 1897.
In 1882, he married Margaret Alexander Douglas, daughter of wealthy Montreal businessman Alexander Douglas. They had two children, a son, Douglas Weir, and daughter Marjorie Douglas Weir. Margaret would become known for her role in a movement to provide children's playgrounds in Montreal. The family divided their time between Montreal and a summer home named Cedarhurst, in Cedarville, a picturesque hamlet on the east shore of Lac Memphrémagog in the Eastern Townships
of Quebec.
for the Montreal No. 4 riding of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec
. In 1898, he was one of several eminent advocate
s appointed to revise the charter of the City of Montreal. It is believed that, in particular, he wrote many of the sections relating to expropriations and the power of the city to pass by-laws.
On May 6, 1899, he was appointed Recorder
for Montreal. During this time as a recorder, he also taught liturgics
and jurisprudence
in the Congregational College of Canada, which was affiliated with McGill University. Weir later served as a municipal court judge and was considered an expert on the historical aspects of municipal law. Lastly, he was appointed a judge for the Exchequer Court of Canada. In 1923, he was honoured as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada
.
The French version had originally been commissioned in 1880 by the Lieutenant Governor of Quebec, Théodore Robitaille
with lyrics by Sir Adolphe Basile Routhier and music composed by Calixa Lavallée
in time for the Congrès national des Canadiens-Français which was to be held on St. Jean Baptiste Day
of that year. The popularity of the song grew quickly in Quebec and was played frequently at special events in the province.
The first evidence of O Canada being sung in English Canada
was when school children sang it for the 1901 tour of Canada by the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall
(later King George V
and Queen Mary
). Various translations of the French lyrics were attempted over the next few years but none were well-received until Weir's version. It gained acceptance quickly enough that it became the most popular patriotic song for Canadians by approximately the middle of the twentieth century, winning out over The Maple Leaf Forever
and other less well-known alternatives. Weir amended the lyrics slightly in 1913, 1914 and 1916.
This Weir's version would eventually become the unofficial Canadian Anthem sung in English Canada
at sporting events and by Canadian schoolchildren until 1980:
O Canada version by Robert Stanley Weir for the Diamond Jubilee of Confederation in 1927.
O Canada!
Our home and native land.
True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
And stand on guard, O Canada,
We stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, Glorious and free.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee!
Judge Robert Stanley Weir died on August 20, 1926 at Lac Memphrémagog, Quebec, Canada.
Weir's verses of O Canada were published in an official form for the Diamond Jubilee of Confederation
in 1927, and gradually became the most generally accepted anthem in English-speaking Canada, completely winning out over the alternatives by the 1960s.
In seeking to enact O Canada as the national anthem officially, a Special Joint Committee of the Senate
and House of Commons
was struck. In 1968, the committee recommended changes to the English version–replacing one of the repeated phrases "We stand on guard for thee" with "From far and wide" and one "O Canada" with "God keep our land".
The committee also thought it appropriate for the government to acquire copyright
to the words and music. Canadian copyright laws held for 50 years beyond the author's death so there was no trouble with the copyright for the music but the heirs of Weir objected to the changes to the words. Since Weir died in 1926, it would not be in the public domain
until 1976. Evidence was found that the copyright had actually descended to Gordon V. Thompson, a music publisher, who agreed to sell it to the government in 1970 for the nominal sum of $1. The committee, however, still hoped to settle the matter amicably with Weir's family, if at all possible.
Finally, on July 1, 1980, 100 years after Routhier and Lavallée penned the hymn, the National Anthem Act officially proclaimed the French and modified English versions as the National Anthem of Canada. Today, God Save the Queen
is Canada's royal anthem, while The Maple Leaf Forever is rarely heard.
Two provinces have adopted Latin
translations of phrases from the English lyrics as their mottos: Manitoba
—Gloriosus et liber (glorious and free)— and Alberta
—Fortis et liber (strong and free). Similarly, the motto of Canadian Forces Land Force Command
is Vigilamus pro te (we stand on guard for thee). As well, the motto for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics was "with glowing hearts".
A postage stamp was issued in honour of Weir, Lavallée, and Routhier on June 6, 1980 and on May 24, 1999, a monument for Judge Weir was erected in Weir Memorial Park, on the shores of Lac Memphrémagog, near where he wrote the famous lyrics.
In recent years, the English version of the anthem has been criticized, by feminists such as Senator Vivienne Poy
, for being sexist ("true patriot love in all thy sons command"); alternate lyrics ("in all of us command", "in all our hearts command" or "thou dost in us command") have been proposed but are not widely supported.
Weir's grandson, Steve Simpson, says the word "son" is not about gender, but a reference to a patriotic command from a maternal goddess.
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
judge and poet most famous for writing the English lyrics to O Canada
O Canada
It has been noted that the opening theme of "O Canada" bears a strong resemblance to the "Marsch der Priester" , from the opera Die Zauberflöte , composed in 1791 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and that Lavallée's melody was inspired by Mozart's tune...
, the national anthem
National anthem
A national anthem is a generally patriotic musical composition that evokes and eulogizes the history, traditions and struggles of its people, recognized either by a nation's government as the official national song, or by convention through use by the people.- History :Anthems rose to prominence...
of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. He was educated as a teacher and lawyer and considered one of the leading experts of the day on Quebec's municipal
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
civil law
Civil law (legal system)
Civil law is a legal system inspired by Roman law and whose primary feature is that laws are codified into collections, as compared to common law systems that gives great precedential weight to common law on the principle that it is unfair to treat similar facts differently on different...
. He was appointed a municipal court judge and a judge for the Exchequer Court of Canada
Federal Court of Canada
The Federal Court of Canada was a national court of Canada that heard some types of disputes arising under the central government's legislative jurisdiction...
.
Weir published several individual poems in magazines and collections in books. His lyrics for the English version of O Canada eclipsed many others' lyrical attempts and songs to quickly become the most popular patriotic
Patriotism
Patriotism is a devotion to one's country, excluding differences caused by the dependencies of the term's meaning upon context, geography and philosophy...
song in Canada for the past century.
Early history
Robert Stanley Weir was born in HamiltonHamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
, Canada West, the son of William Park Weir and Helen Craig Smith, who had emigrated
Emigration
Emigration is the act of leaving one's country or region to settle in another. It is the same as immigration but from the perspective of the country of origin. Human movement before the establishment of political boundaries or within one state is termed migration. There are many reasons why people...
from Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
to Canada in 1852. Weir moved to Montreal, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
with his family as an infant, where his father became a Surveyor of Customs
Customs
Customs is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting and safeguarding customs duties and for controlling the flow of goods including animals, transports, personal effects and hazardous items in and out of a country...
in the Port of Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
. His brother, William Alexander Weir
William Alexander Weir
William Alexander Weir was a Quebec lawyer, politician, and judge. He was the MLA for Argenteuil in the Legislative Assembly of Quebec from 1897–1910, held several ministries, and helped rewrite several provincial Codes.-Early life:William Alexander Weir was born in Montreal on October 15, 1858,...
, was born there and would later become a Cabinet
Cabinet (government)
A Cabinet is a body of high ranking government officials, typically representing the executive branch. It can also sometimes be referred to as the Council of Ministers, an Executive Council, or an Executive Committee.- Overview :...
Minister in the Legislative Assembly of Quebec
Legislative Assembly of Quebec
The Legislative Assembly of Quebec was the name of the lower house of Quebec's legislature until 1968, when it was renamed the National Assembly of Quebec. At the same time, the upper house of the legislature, the Legislative Council, was abolished...
.
Weir studied at McGill Normal School, Montreal, and at the age of 19, was appointed principal of Sherbrooke Street School, one of the newest and largest Montreal public schools at the time. He continued his studies at McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
earning his Bachelor of Civil Law
Bachelor of Civil Law
Bachelor of Civil Law is the name of various degrees in law conferred by English-language universities. Historically, it originated as a postgraduate degree in the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, but many universities now offer the BCL as an undergraduate degree...
in 1880 and a Doctor of Civil Law
Doctor of Civil Law
Doctor of Civil Law is a degree offered by some universities, such as the University of Oxford, instead of the more common Doctor of Laws degrees....
in 1897.
In 1882, he married Margaret Alexander Douglas, daughter of wealthy Montreal businessman Alexander Douglas. They had two children, a son, Douglas Weir, and daughter Marjorie Douglas Weir. Margaret would become known for her role in a movement to provide children's playgrounds in Montreal. The family divided their time between Montreal and a summer home named Cedarhurst, in Cedarville, a picturesque hamlet on the east shore of Lac Memphrémagog in the Eastern Townships
Eastern Townships
The Eastern Townships is a tourist region and a former administrative region in south-eastern Quebec, lying between the former seigneuries south of the Saint Lawrence River and the United States border. Its northern boundary roughly followed Logan's Line, the geologic boundary between the flat,...
of Quebec.
Career
From 1881, Weir practised law in Montreal and took a particular interest in municipal questions and had several of his studies published. In 1892, he ran unsuccessfully as a LiberalParti libéral du Québec
The Quebec Liberal Party is a centre-right political party in Quebec. It has been independent of the federal Liberal Party of Canada since 1955....
for the Montreal No. 4 riding of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec
Legislative Assembly of Quebec
The Legislative Assembly of Quebec was the name of the lower house of Quebec's legislature until 1968, when it was renamed the National Assembly of Quebec. At the same time, the upper house of the legislature, the Legislative Council, was abolished...
. In 1898, he was one of several eminent advocate
Advocate
An advocate is a term for a professional lawyer used in several different legal systems. These include Scotland, South Africa, India, Scandinavian jurisdictions, Israel, and the British Crown dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man...
s appointed to revise the charter of the City of Montreal. It is believed that, in particular, he wrote many of the sections relating to expropriations and the power of the city to pass by-laws.
On May 6, 1899, he was appointed Recorder
Recorder (judge)
A Recorder is a judicial officer in England and Wales. It now refers to two quite different appointments. The ancient Recorderships of England and Wales now form part of a system of Honorary Recorderships which are filled by the most senior full-time circuit judges...
for Montreal. During this time as a recorder, he also taught liturgics
Liturgy
Liturgy is either the customary public worship done by a specific religious group, according to its particular traditions or a more precise term that distinguishes between those religious groups who believe their ritual requires the "people" to do the "work" of responding to the priest, and those...
and jurisprudence
Jurisprudence
Jurisprudence is the theory and philosophy of law. Scholars of jurisprudence, or legal theorists , hope to obtain a deeper understanding of the nature of law, of legal reasoning, legal systems and of legal institutions...
in the Congregational College of Canada, which was affiliated with McGill University. Weir later served as a municipal court judge and was considered an expert on the historical aspects of municipal law. Lastly, he was appointed a judge for the Exchequer Court of Canada. In 1923, he was honoured as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada
Royal Society of Canada
The Royal Society of Canada , may also operate under the more descriptive name RSC: The Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada , is the oldest association of scientists and scholars in Canada...
.
O Canada
In 1908, Weir wrote English lyrics for O Canada while at his summer home, Cedarhurst, in time to honour the 300th anniversary of the founding of Quebec City.The French version had originally been commissioned in 1880 by the Lieutenant Governor of Quebec, Théodore Robitaille
Théodore Robitaille
Théodore Robitaille, PC was a Canadian physician, politician, and the fourth Lieutenant Governor of Quebec....
with lyrics by Sir Adolphe Basile Routhier and music composed by Calixa Lavallée
Calixa Lavallée
Calixa Lavallée, , born Calixte Lavallée, was a French-Canadian-American musician and Union officer during the American Civil War who composed the music for O Canada, which officially became the national anthem of Canada in 1980.-Biography:Calixa Lavallée was born at Verchères, a suburb of...
in time for the Congrès national des Canadiens-Français which was to be held on St. Jean Baptiste Day
Fête nationale du Québec
Quebec's National Holiday is celebrated annually on June 24, St. John the Baptist DayIn Quebec, the national holiday is a paid statutory public holiday covered under the Act Respecting Labour Standards...
of that year. The popularity of the song grew quickly in Quebec and was played frequently at special events in the province.
The first evidence of O Canada being sung in English Canada
English Canada
English Canada is a term used to describe one of the following:# English-speaking Canadians, as opposed to French-speaking Canadians. It is employed when comparing English- and French-language literature, media, or art...
was when school children sang it for the 1901 tour of Canada by the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall
Duke of Cornwall
The Duchy of Cornwall was the first duchy created in the peerage of England.The present Duke of Cornwall is The Prince of Wales, the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II, the reigning British monarch .-History:...
(later King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
and Queen Mary
Mary of Teck
Mary of Teck was the queen consort of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, as the wife of King-Emperor George V....
). Various translations of the French lyrics were attempted over the next few years but none were well-received until Weir's version. It gained acceptance quickly enough that it became the most popular patriotic song for Canadians by approximately the middle of the twentieth century, winning out over The Maple Leaf Forever
The Maple Leaf Forever
"The Maple Leaf Forever" is a Canadian song written by Alexander Muir in 1867, the year of Canada's Confederation. He wrote the work after serving with The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada in the Battle of Ridgeway against the Fenians in 1866....
and other less well-known alternatives. Weir amended the lyrics slightly in 1913, 1914 and 1916.
This Weir's version would eventually become the unofficial Canadian Anthem sung in English Canada
English Canada
English Canada is a term used to describe one of the following:# English-speaking Canadians, as opposed to French-speaking Canadians. It is employed when comparing English- and French-language literature, media, or art...
at sporting events and by Canadian schoolchildren until 1980:
O Canada version by Robert Stanley Weir for the Diamond Jubilee of Confederation in 1927.
O Canada!
Our home and native land.
True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
And stand on guard, O Canada,
We stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, Glorious and free.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee!
Death and legacy
Weir's verses of O Canada were published in an official form for the Diamond Jubilee of Confederation
Canadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation was the process by which the federal Dominion of Canada was formed on July 1, 1867. On that day, three British colonies were formed into four Canadian provinces...
in 1927, and gradually became the most generally accepted anthem in English-speaking Canada, completely winning out over the alternatives by the 1960s.
In seeking to enact O Canada as the national anthem officially, a Special Joint Committee of the Senate
Canadian Senate
The Senate of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the House of Commons, and the monarch . The Senate consists of 105 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister...
and House of Commons
Canadian House of Commons
The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...
was struck. In 1968, the committee recommended changes to the English version–replacing one of the repeated phrases "We stand on guard for thee" with "From far and wide" and one "O Canada" with "God keep our land".
The committee also thought it appropriate for the government to acquire copyright
Copyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
to the words and music. Canadian copyright laws held for 50 years beyond the author's death so there was no trouble with the copyright for the music but the heirs of Weir objected to the changes to the words. Since Weir died in 1926, it would not be in the public domain
Public domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
until 1976. Evidence was found that the copyright had actually descended to Gordon V. Thompson, a music publisher, who agreed to sell it to the government in 1970 for the nominal sum of $1. The committee, however, still hoped to settle the matter amicably with Weir's family, if at all possible.
Finally, on July 1, 1980, 100 years after Routhier and Lavallée penned the hymn, the National Anthem Act officially proclaimed the French and modified English versions as the National Anthem of Canada. Today, God Save the Queen
God Save the Queen
"God Save the Queen" is an anthem used in a number of Commonwealth realms and British Crown Dependencies. The words of the song, like its title, are adapted to the gender of the current monarch, with "King" replacing "Queen", "he" replacing "she", and so forth, when a king reigns...
is Canada's royal anthem, while The Maple Leaf Forever is rarely heard.
Two provinces have adopted Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
translations of phrases from the English lyrics as their mottos: Manitoba
Coat of arms of Manitoba
The original coat of arms of Manitoba was granted to Manitoba by a Royal Warrant of King Edward VII on 10 May 1905. The shield is also featured on the provincial flag.-History:...
—Gloriosus et liber (glorious and free)— and Alberta
Coat of arms of Alberta
The original coat of arms of Alberta was granted to Alberta by a Royal Warrant of King Edward VII on 30 May 1907. The shield is also featured on the flag of Alberta.-History:...
—Fortis et liber (strong and free). Similarly, the motto of Canadian Forces Land Force Command
Canadian Forces Land Force Command
The Canadian Army , previously called Land Force Command, is responsible for army operations within the Canadian Forces. The current size of the Army is 19,500 regular soldiers and 16,000 reserve soldiers, for a total of around 35,500 soldiers...
is Vigilamus pro te (we stand on guard for thee). As well, the motto for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics was "with glowing hearts".
A postage stamp was issued in honour of Weir, Lavallée, and Routhier on June 6, 1980 and on May 24, 1999, a monument for Judge Weir was erected in Weir Memorial Park, on the shores of Lac Memphrémagog, near where he wrote the famous lyrics.
In recent years, the English version of the anthem has been criticized, by feminists such as Senator Vivienne Poy
Vivienne Poy
Vivienne Poy was appointed to the Senate of Canada in 1998. Poy came to Canada as a university student in 1959. She is the first Canadian senator of Asian ancestry. She graduated from St...
, for being sexist ("true patriot love in all thy sons command"); alternate lyrics ("in all of us command", "in all our hearts command" or "thou dost in us command") have been proposed but are not widely supported.
Weir's grandson, Steve Simpson, says the word "son" is not about gender, but a reference to a patriotic command from a maternal goddess.
Works
- Bills of Exchange Act 1890
- Education Act
- Civil Code
- Code of Civil Procedure
- Municipal Code
Published works
- Robert Stanley Weir (1889). Review of D.J. Macdonnell's sermon entitled Death abolished: Preached in St. Andrew's church, Toronto, Sunday, 3 March 1889.
- Robert Stanley Weir (1890). An insolvency manual containing the articles of the Code of civil procedure relating to abandonment of property, capias ad respondendum, attachments b .... Montreal?:A. Periard.
- Robert Stanley Weir (1897). The administration of the old régime in Canada. Montreal?:L.E. & A.F. Waters.
- Robert Stanley Weir. Municipal institutions in the province of Quebec, (University of Toronto studies).
- Robert Stanley Weir. Gone West.
- Judge Robert Stanley Weir (1908). O Canada. Delmar Music Co.
- Judge Robert Stanley Weir (1917). After Ypres and other verses. Toronto: Musson Books.
- Judge Robert Stanley Weir (1922). Poems, Early And Late. Toronto: Oxford University Press.
See also
- O CanadaO CanadaIt has been noted that the opening theme of "O Canada" bears a strong resemblance to the "Marsch der Priester" , from the opera Die Zauberflöte , composed in 1791 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and that Lavallée's melody was inspired by Mozart's tune...
- Calixa LavalléeCalixa LavalléeCalixa Lavallée, , born Calixte Lavallée, was a French-Canadian-American musician and Union officer during the American Civil War who composed the music for O Canada, which officially became the national anthem of Canada in 1980.-Biography:Calixa Lavallée was born at Verchères, a suburb of...
- Adolphe-Basile RouthierAdolphe-Basile RouthierSir Adolphe-Basile Routhier was a Canadian judge, author, and lyricist. He wrote the lyrics of the original French version of the Canadian national anthem O Canada. He was born in Saint-Placide, Quebec to Charles Routhier and Angélique Lafleur.Routhier studied law at Université Laval and graduated...
- William Alexander WeirWilliam Alexander WeirWilliam Alexander Weir was a Quebec lawyer, politician, and judge. He was the MLA for Argenteuil in the Legislative Assembly of Quebec from 1897–1910, held several ministries, and helped rewrite several provincial Codes.-Early life:William Alexander Weir was born in Montreal on October 15, 1858,...
External links
- Ministry of Canadian Heritage National Anthem
- Lavallee, Calixa; Weir, R. Stanley; and Grant-Schaefer, G. A. (1914). O Canada!. Montreal: Delmar Music Co. (archived at Library of CongressLibrary of CongressThe Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
)