"Bože pravde" ( , English: "Lord, Give Us Justice" or "God of Justice") is the official anthem of Serbia, as defined by the Article 7 of the Constitution of Serbia. "Bože pravde" was the anthem of the Principality of Serbia and Kingdom of Serbia until 1918 when Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was formed. It was recommended by the Parliament of Serbia on August 17, 2004 and constitutionally adopted on November 8, 2006. The recommended text was made Law on May 11, 2009. The orriginal song was written in 1872 with music by Davorin Jenko and lyrics by Jovan Đorđević. It was then a piece for the theater play "Marko kazuje na kome je carstvo" (Marko Names The Emperor), and its immense popularity with audiences prompted its adoption as the Serbian national anthem.

While being the anthem of the Kingdom of Serbia, it occasionally was referred to as "Serbian National Prayer" and the original lyrics contained a petition for the Serbian king. Various rulers of Serbia changed the words of the anthem to suit them. During the rule of Prince Milan I of Serbia, the words were "God, save Prince Milan" (knez Milana Bože spasi), which changed to King Milan when Serbia became a kingdom. Later the anthem was tailored to Peter I and Alexander I as well. During the time of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later Kingdom of Yugoslavia), "Bože pravde" was part of its national anthem.

It was also used as an anthem of Republika Srpska, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the period of 1991 to 2006, when it was ruled down by the country's constitutional court.

Republika Srpska retained the old lyrics, while Serbia uses slightly modified lyrics, asserting that it is no longer a monarchy — four verses are different. In three, "Serbian king" (srpskog kralja) is changed to "Serbian lands" (srpske zemlje) and in one, "God, save Serbian king" (srpskog kralja Bože spasi) is changed in "God save, God defend" (Bože spasi, Bože brani).

The Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina has ruled against the use of "Bože pravde" as the anthem of Republika Srpska in 2006, declaring it unconstitutional, and the decision was upheld by the Constitutional Court of Republika Srpska. The new anthem of Republika Srpska was adopted in 2008.

In 1990s, "Vostani Serbije" and "Marš na Drinu" were proposed as the anthem of Serbia along with Bоže pravde. The latter, promulgated by then-ruling Socialist Party of Serbia, even received a plurality of popular vote on 1992 referendum, but it never got officially adopted.

Lyrics

The anthem officially has eight stanzas, but only the first two are usually sung.

Serbian Cyrillic	Serbian Latin	English translation
Боже правде, ти што спасе од пропасти досад нас, чуј и одсад наше гласе и од сад нам буди спас. Моћном руком води, брани будућности српске брод, Боже спаси, Боже храни, српске земље, српски род! Сложи српску браћу драгу на свак дичан славан рад, слога биће пораз врагу а најјачи српству град. Нек на српској блиста грани братске слоге златан плод, Боже спаси, Боже храни српске земље, српски род! Нек на српско ведро чело твог не падне гнева гром Благослови Србу село поље, њиву, град и дом! Кад наступе борбе дани к’ победи му води ход Боже спаси, Боже храни српске земље, српски род! Из мрачнога сину гроба српске славе нови сјај настало је ново доба Нову срећу, Боже дај! Отаџбину српску брани пет вековне борбе плод Боже спаси, Боже брани моли ти се српски род!	Bože pravde, ti što spase od propasti dosad nas, čuj i odsad naše glase i od sad nam budi spas. Moćnom rukom vodi, brani budućnosti srpske brod, Bože spasi, Bože hrani, srpske zemlje, srpski rod! Složi srpsku braću dragu na svak dičan slavan rad, sloga biće poraz vragu a najjači srpstvu grad. Nek na srpskoj blista grani bratske sloge zlatan plod, Bože spasi, Bože hrani srpske zemlje, srpski rod! Nek na srpsko vedro čelo tvog ne padne gneva grom Blagoslovi Srbu selo polje, njivu, grad i dom! Kad nastupe borbe dani k’ pobedi mu vodi hod Bože spasi, Bože hrani srpske zemlje, srpski rod! Iz mračnoga sinu groba srpske slave novi sjaj nastalo je novo doba Novu sreću, Bože daj! Otadžbinu srpsku brani pet vekovne borbe plod Bože spasi, Bože brani moli ti se srpski rod!	God of Justice; Thou who saved us when in deepest bondage cast, Hear our voices from now on too, Be our help as in the past. With Thy mighty hand sustain us, Still our rugged pathway trace; God, our hope; protect and cherish Serbian lands and Serbian race! Bind in closest links our kindred Teach the love that will not fail, May the loathed fiend of discord Never in our ranks prevail. Let the golden fruits of union Our young tree of freedom grace; God, our Master! guide and prosper Serbian lands and Serbian race! Lord! Avert from us Thy vengeance, Thunder of Thy dreaded ire; Bless each Serbian town and hamlet, Mountain, meadow, heart and spire. When the days of battle come Lead our path to victory God be our leader Strengthen then the Serbian race On our sepulchre of ages Breaks the resurrection morn, From the slough of direst slavery Serbia anew is born. Through five hundred years of durance We have knelt before Thy face, All our kin, O God! deliver, Thus entreats the Serbian race!

References

External links

• Parliament of Serbia A page featuring sheet music for Brass Band, and for Orchestra with mixed choir, as well as an instrumental file
• Instrumental National Anthem of Serbia MP3
• Performance of the Serbian National Anthem on YouTube.com