Auferstanden aus Ruinen [National Anthem of East Germany]

After the Second World War, Germany was divided into four occupation zones, and in 1949 two separate German states emerged: the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) and the German Democratic Republic (East Germany, or DDR). The GDR was established on 7 October 1949 under the leadership of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED), presenting itself as a new socialist German state rising from the devastation of the war. In this context, the new government sought symbols that represented reconstruction, peace, unity, and a new beginning. The GDR therefore commissioned a new national anthem shortly after its foundation, with poet Johannes R. Becher writing the lyrics and composer Hanns Eisler creating the melody. “Auferstanden aus Ruinen” (“Risen from the Ruins”) became the national anthem of the German Democratic Republic and was officially used from 1949 until the reunification of Germany in 1990. Becher wrote the text in October 1949, intending it as a peaceful, popular anthem that could appeal to Germans across social classes and even to people living in the West. The song speaks of rebuilding Germany after the destruction of the war, overcoming poverty and hardship, working together, and creating a peaceful future. Its famous reference to “Deutschland, einig Vaterland” (“Germany, united fatherland”) originally reflected the GDR's aspiration toward German unity. The anthem was first publicly performed in November 1949 and quickly became deeply integrated into everyday life in East Germany, being taught in schools and performed at official ceremonies. From around 1970, however, the GDR leadership increasingly abandoned its claim to represent all Germans, and the lyrics became politically inconvenient; the anthem was therefore generally performed only as an instrumental version. During the peaceful revolution of 1989, the line “Deutschland, einig Vaterland” was revived by demonstrators as a call for German reunification. The anthem returned with its lyrics to radio and television in January 1990, and it was sung for the final time officially by members of the Volkskammer on 23 August 1990, shortly before German reunification.