This Anonymous old Dutch song is reminiscent of the struggles between the Protestant Netherlands and the Catholic Spanish oppressors at the time of the supremacy of Philip II of Europe. At the time of that king’s death in 1598, the United Provinces of the Northern section of the Netherlands continued their struggle for independence and gained a truce for 11 years. Although this truce did not recognize their independence and an attempt at reconquest was renewed, the Dutch republic became a sovereign state at that time under Maurice of Nassau.

Religious warfare and divine guidance and deliverance are noted through all these stanzas, which enlarge upon Hebrew 13:6, “The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” The lines were first written about 1625 and published in 1626 to celebrate the liberation of the Netherlands from Spain. The English translation by Baker was printed first in Coenraad V. Bos’s Dutch Folk-songs, 1917.

Theodore Baker was born June 3, 1851, in New York. As a young man he was trained for a career in business. At age 23 he decided to switched to music, and went to Leipzig, Germany, for study with Oscar Paul. His doctoral thesis was the first serious study of the music of American Indians. In 1890 he returned to the United Stated to become musical editor and translator for the publishing house of G. Schirmer. He edited and published the monumental Baker’s Biographical Dictionary of Music and Musicians, which, under editorship of Nicolas Slonimsky, is now in its seventh edition. Baker’s Dictionary of Musical Terms went through more than 25 printing and sold more than 1 million copies. In 1926 he retired, and lived in Dresden, Germany, until his death in October 13, 1934. His other translation in SDAH is No. 131, “Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming.”

The tune KREMSER is named after Eduard Kremser, a Biennese director of a male-voice singing society. He rediscovered the tune, originally a Dutch folk song appropriated by Adrian Valerius in his collection of Dutch songs published in Haarlem in 1626. Kremser used it in a collection of works he arranged for male chorus and orchestra, the Sech Altneiderlandische Volkslieder, 1877, all of which were from Valerius’ book, made 250 years earlier. Kremser was born April 10, 1838, and died November 26, 1914, in Vienna. He composed operatas, cantatas, and orchestral and piano music.