German Kaiser's Imperial Hymn for String Orchestra

Before the foundation of the Empire in 1871, it had been the royal anthem of Prussia since 1795 and remained as the royal anthem after 1871. The melody of the hymn derived from the British anthem "God Save the King". For these reasons, the song failed to become popular within all of Germany. Not only did it fail to win the support of most German nationalists, but it also was never recognized by the southern German states, such as Bavaria or Württemberg. At the near end of World War I, the German Empire was overthrown and "Das Lied der Deutschen" was adopted as the national anthem of its successor, the Weimar Republic.