Das Lied der Deutschen (&quotThe Song of the Germans&quot, also Das Deutschlandlied, &quotThe Song of Germany&quot) has been the national anthem of Germany since 1922. Composer Joseph Haydn wrote the music for the anthem in 1797 on the birthday of Holy Roman Emperor Francis-II. In 1841, Hoffmann von Fallersleben wrote on the then British island of Helgoland the text of &quotSongs of the Germans&quot to the famous melody of Joseph Haydn. It later became the anthem of the Weimar Republic. In 1933, only the first stanza became the anthem of the Third Reich (after which the &quotSong of Horst Wessel&quot was performed, which was not officially considered part of the anthem) banned by the Control Council in 1945). Today, the third stanza is the anthem of the united Germany.