Landesvater

Landesvater, a ceremony of student ‘Korps’ (see Studentische Verbindungen), in which the song ‘Alles schweige’ is sung, while the caps of those present are transfixed with a duelling sword. The name derives from an older song used for this ceremony, ‘Landesvater, Schutz und Rater’. Each ‘Korps’ was originally drawn from a particular German state, and the ceremony was a declaration of loyalty to state and prince (Landesvater). It subsequently became a declaration of loyalty to the ‘Korps’. The custom dates from the 17th c.