Did You Know: “Negaraku” is Based on a 19th Century Song by a French Composer Who Lived in Seychelles?

When you think of Malaysian patriotism, the song “Negaraku” surely comes to mind. The idea to create the national anthem started as the country was preparing to celebrate its Independence Day. But what’s the story behind the song?

The origins of the “Negaraku” song have been a topic of discussion among netizens online recently, with some saying that the song resembles an old song.

Negaraku is based on an old song called La Rosalie

A recent TikTok video shared by @beatblitzmusicofficial explains how the nostalgic song “Negaraku” actually originated from the state of Perak.

Going back in time, on 30th March 1877, Sultan Abdullah (the then Sultan of Perak) was exiled from Perak after being suspected of conspiring with Tun Maharaja Lela in killing JWW Birch.

When Sultan Abdullah was exiled, he was sent to Seychelles, which was a French colony at that time.

“While in Seychelles, Sultan Abdullah encountered a French brass band playing a song called ‘La Rosalie’, composed by Jean Pierre-de Be Ranger.”

Raja Chulan, the son of Sultan Abdullah, frequently visited his father in Seychelles, where he learned about the song “La Rosalie”. Upon returning to Perak, he introduced the song to his brother, Raja Ngah Mansur, who had never been to Seychelles.

Queen Victoria requested a royal anthem to be played during the coronation

@beatblitzmusicofficial continued to share how Sultan Idris (the then Sultan of Perak) and Raja Chulan were invited to attend Queen Victoria’s coronation in London 11 years after Sultan Abdullah was exiled from Perak.

Queen Victoria asked Sultan Idris for the sheet music of the royal anthem. The request was made because it was customary to play a royal anthem whenever kings arrived at the hall.

It was then when Raja Chulan proposed, with Sultan Idris’s approval, that the “La Rosalie” song be played as the royal anthem.

However, Sultan Idris didn’t have the music sheet for the “La Rosalie” song to provide at the time. He then informed the queen that he had forgotten to bring the notes.

La Rosalie became Sultan Perak’s official anthem

Sultan Idris then asked Queen Victoria to appoint a music expert who could recreate the sheet music to play the tune of the song “La Rosalie” in a whistling tone.

From that point on, the melody of “La Rosalie” was played as the Perak Sultan’s official anthem in London in 1888.

The song “La Rosalie” has several versions, including Cantonese, Indonesian, and Hawaiian, but the original version by French composer Pierre-Jean de Beranger was never recorded.

You can watch the full video down below:

@beatblitzmusicofficial

Beberapa nota yang saya tak sempat masukkan dalam video. Raja Chulan (anak Sultan Abdullah) sering datang ke Mahe untuk melawat ayahandanya, tidak terlepas daripada mendengar lagu itu. Kemudian, Raja Chulan membawa pulang irama lagu tersebut dan diperkenankan kepada kekandanya iaitu Raja Ngah Mansur yang tidak pernah ke Pulau Mahe tersebut. Pada Tahun 1888, Sultan Idris Murshidul Azzam Shah (Sultan Perak ke-28) berangkat ke London bersama Raja Chulan atas undangan Ratu Inggeris, Queen Victoria. Maka dicadangkan Raja Chulan dengan perkenan Sultan Idris supaya dimainkan lagu La Rosalie sebagai Lagu Kebesaran Sultan Perak di London pada tahun 1888. . . . #laguproduk #brandsong #productsong #tiktokguru#learnontiktok #music #musicinfo #mamulamoon #larosalie #malaysiatiktok #negaraku @Ryo Ritthirong

♬ original sound – BeatBlitzMusic – BeatBlitzMusic

We can all agree that “Negaraku” is an absolute banger. Every Malaysian knows the lyrics by heart, and the song never fails to stir feelings of pride and patriotism whenever it’s played. It also lowkey reminds us of school assemblies…

Also read: Watch: M’sians Sing Negaraku Around Flag After Arriving Home Safely From Attacks in Indonesia