Kingdom of Spain/Restauración Borbónica (1874–1931) “Marcha Real“ (1770)

The Marcha Real (Royal March“) is the national anthem of Spain. The anthem, one of the oldest in the world, was first printed in a document dated 1761 and entitled Libro de Ordenanza de los toques militares de la Infantería Española (The Spanish Infantry’s Book of Military Bugle and Fife Calls), by Manuel de Espinosa. Here it is entitled La Marcha Granadera (“March of the Grenadiers“), although no composer’s name is given. In 1770, King Charles III declared the Marcha Granadera to be the official “Honour March“ for the Sovereigns and the Royal Family, as it was played at public and ceremonial events, and because it was always played at public events attended by the royal family, Spaniards soon came to regard the Marcha Granadera as their national anthem and called it the Marcha Real, or “Royal March“. Though the Marcha Real has no lyrics, words have been written and used for it in the past. One version was used during Alfonso XIII’s reign and