Commander replaced after incident involving German national anthem
The first verse of the German national anthem is not banned, but it is no longer sung because the lyrics were misused by the Nazis. Nevertheless, the first verse was played at a German Armed Forces event. This now has consequences for a high-ranking officer.
Berlin (dpa) – The commander of the German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) NCO School has resigned from his post after an incident at which the first verse of Germany's national anthem was played at a party. The Bundeswehr announced that the head of the training facility in the eastern city of Delitzsch had responsibility for the incident and resigned from his post. His resignation has been accepted.
At the Christmas party in the barracks of the NCO school, which was attended by around 1,000 guests, a civilian disc jockey played the first verse of the German national anthem which begins with the words "Deutschland, Deutschland über alles..." ("Germany, Germany above all..."). The lyrics for "Song of the Germans" was written by August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben in 1841. The lyrics of the first verse were misused for propaganda purposes by the National Socialists in the 1930s and 40s.
Today, only the third verse, with the words "Unity and justice and freedom..." is used as Germany's national anthem. The other verses are not however legally prohibited.
Commander deeply regrets the incident
"I deeply regret the incident and accept the consequences. Playing the first verse and the insufficient follow-up to date are not in line with the leadership culture in the army," the commander of the NCO school was quoted as saying. "In order to prevent further damage to the NCO school, I have resigned from my post," he added.
From January 5, his deputy will initially take over the running of the school. NCO is the abbreviation of Noncommissioned Officer.