Thomas Richardson (1901)
First instance of O Canada sung in English; loose translation of Hon. Judge Routhier’s text.
O Canada! Our father’s land of old,
Thy brow is crown’d with leaves of red and gold.
Beneath the shade of the Holy cross,
Thy children own their birth.
No stains thy glorious annals gloss,
Since valour shields thy hearth.
Almighty God! On thee we call.
Defend our rights, forefend this nation’s thrall.
Defend our rights, forefend our nation’s thrall.