"Semper Paratus" is the official march of the United States Coast Guard

United States Coast Guard

The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...

.

Semper Paratus is also the official Coast Guard motto

Motto

A motto is a phrase meant to formally summarize the general motivation or intention of a social group or organization. A motto may be in any language, but Latin is the most used. The local language is usual in the mottoes of governments...

. The origin of the phrase is obscure, although the Coast Guard Historian's Office notes the first use was by the New Orleans Bee newspaper in the 1830s, in reference to the actions of the Revenue Cutter Service during the Ingham Incident

Ingham Incident

The Ingham Incident, or the Montezuma Affair, was a naval battle fought in 1835, and the first between Mexico and the United States. The warship Montezuma patrolled the coast of Texas to prevent the smuggling of contraband into the territory...

. The original lyrics

Lyrics

Lyrics are a set of words that make up a song. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist or lyrist. The meaning of lyrics can either be explicit or implicit. Some lyrics are abstract, almost unintelligible, and, in such cases, their explication emphasizes form, articulation, meter, and symmetry of...

 (seen below) were written by Captain Francis Saltus Van Boskerck in 1922, in the cabin of the cutter Yamacraw, in Savannah, Georgia

Savannah, Georgia

Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...

; he wrote the music in 1927, on a "beat-up old piano

Piano

The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...

" in Unalaska, Alaska

Unalaska, Alaska

Unalaska is a city in the Aleutians West Census Area of the Unorganized Borough of the U.S. state of Alaska. Unalaska is located on Unalaska Island and neighboring Amaknak Island in the Aleutian Islands off of mainland Alaska....

.

The current verse, as well as a second chorus

Refrain

A refrain is the line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse; the "chorus" of a song...

, were written by Homer Smith

Homer Smith

Dr Homer William Smith was an American physiologist and an advocate for science. His research work focused on the kidney and he discovered inulin at the same time as A.N. Richards. Dr...

, 3rd Naval District Coast Guard quartet, Chief Cole, Walton Butterfield in 1943. In 1969, the first line of each verse was changed.

Verse 1

From Aztec

Aztec

The Aztec people were certain ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl language and who dominated large parts of Mesoamerica in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries, a period referred to as the late post-classic period in Mesoamerican chronology.Aztec is the...

 Shore to Arctic

Arctic

The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...

 Zone,

To Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

 and Far East

Far East

The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...

,

The Flag is carried by our ships

In times of war and peace;

And never have we struck it yet,

In spite of foemen's might,

Who cheered our crews and cheered again

For showing how to fight.

Chorus

We're always ready for the call,

We place our trust in Thee.

Through surf and storm and howling gale,

High shall our purpose be,

"Semper Paratus" is our guide,

Our fame, our glory, too.

To fight to save or fight and die!

Aye! Coast Guard, we are for you.

Verse 2

"Surveyor" and "Narcissus,"

The "Eagle

USCGC Eagle (WIX-327)

The is a barque used as a training cutter for future officers of the United States Coast Guard. She is one of only two active commissioned sailing vessels in American military service, the other being the USS Constitution....

" and "Dispatch,"

The "Hudson" and the "Tampa,"

These names are hard to match;

From Barrow's shores

Point Barrow

Point Barrow or Nuvuk is a headland on the Arctic coast in the U.S. state of Alaska, northeast of Barrow. It is the northernmost point of all the territory of the United States, at...

 to Paraguay

Paraguay

Paraguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...

,

Great Lakes

Great Lakes

The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...

 or Ocean's wave,

The Coast Guard fights through storms and winds

To punish or to save.

Verse 3

Aye! We've been "Always Ready"

To do, to fight, or die!

Write glory to the shield we wear

In letters to the sky.

To sink the foe or save the maimed

Our mission and our pride.

We'll carry on 'til Kingdom Come

Ideals for which we've died.

See also

• Marines' Hymn
  Marines' Hymn
  The "Marines' Hymn" is the official hymn of the United States Marine Corps. It is the oldest official song in the United States military. The "Marines' Hymn" is typically sung at the position of attention as a gesture of respect...
  
  
• The U.S. Air Force (song)
  The U.S. Air Force (song)
  The U.S. Air Force is the official song of the United States Air Force. Written in 1939, it is known informally as "The Air Force Song," and is often referred to informally as "Into the Wild Blue Yonder", "Off We Go Into the Wild Blue Yonder," or simply "Wild Blue Yonder."Originally, the song was...
  
  
• Anchors Aweigh
  Anchors Aweigh
  "Anchors Aweigh" is the fight song of the United States Naval Academy, and strongly associated with the United States Navy, composed in 1906 by Charles A. Zimmerman with lyrics by Alfred Hart Miles. Zimmerman was at the time a Lieutenant, and had been bandmaster of the United States Naval Academy...
  
  
• The Army Goes Rolling Along
  The Army Goes Rolling Along
  "The Army Goes Rolling Along" is the official song of the United States Army and is typically called "The Army Song."-The Caisson Song:The song is based on the "Caisson Song" written by field artillery First Lieutenant Edmund L...
  
  

External links

• Semper Paratus (Always Ready) (MIDI & all versions of the lyrics)
• Semper Paratus (WAV
  WAV
  Waveform Audio File Format , is a Microsoft and IBM audio file format standard for storing an audio bitstream on PCs...
  
  )
• "Semper Paratus" (sheet music
  Sheet music
  Sheet music is a hand-written or printed form of music notation that uses modern musical symbols; like its analogs—books, pamphlets, etc.—the medium of sheet music typically is paper , although the access to musical notation in recent years includes also presentation on computer screens...
  
  )
• "Semper Paratus" (Lyrics)