Swiss Psalm

The Swiss Psalm (German: Schweizerpsalm [ˈʃvaɪtsərˌpsalm] ; French: Cantique suisse [kɑ̃tik sɥis]; Italian: Salmo svizzero [ˈsalmo ˈzvittsero]; Romansh: Psalm Svizzer [ˈ(p)salm ˈʒviːtser] ) is the national anthem of Switzerland. It was composed in 1841, by Alberich Zwyssig (1808–1854). Since then, it has been frequently sung at patriotic events. The Federal Council declined, however, on numerous occasions to accept the psalm as the official Swiss national anthem. This was because the council wanted the people to express their say on what they wanted as a national anthem. From 1961 to 1981, it provisionally replaced "Rufst du, mein Vaterland" ("When You Call, My Country"; French "Ô monts indépendants"; Italian "Ci chiami o patria", Romansh "E clomas, tger paeis"), the anthem by Johann Rudolf Wyss (1743–1818) that was set to the melody of "God Save the King". On 1 April 1981, the Swiss Psalm was declared the official Swiss national anthem. In 2014, the Schweizerische Gemeinnützige Gesellschaft organized a public competition and unofficial vote to change the lyrics of the national anthem.