Berlin: Germany's navy has clarified that there was “no deeper message” behind the decision to play the iconic Imperial March, Darth Vader's theme from the Star Wars films, from one of its warships as it sailed down the River Thames in London this week.
A video of the warship, which was posted online on Monday, quickly went viral. The footage showed the Braunschweig, a German warship, playing the famous tune as it passed through London, sparking a buzz across Europe. The German navy explained that the warship was in the area for routine training and made a standard stop in London for supplies.
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"The commander can choose the music freely," the navy said in a statement Thursday. “The choice of music has no deeper message.”
Another video captured the Braunschweig playing “London Calling” by The Clash upon its arrival. This 1979 rock anthem references the BBC World Service’s wartime broadcasts and includes the lines, “London calling to the zombies of death/Quit holding out and draw another breath.”
The Braunschweig, part of Germany's latest class of ocean-going corvettes, is named after the city of Braunschweig in Lower Saxony, far from the UK. For its departure, a tugboat guided the warship down the Thames near Tower Bridge, with sailors standing on deck. This was the Braunschweig's second visit to the British capital, according to the German Embassy in London on social media.
The warship's commander “is a big ‘Star Wars’ fan and an admirer of the legendary musical scores of John Williams,” the embassy said in a statement. “He chooses a different Williams tune whenever his ship is visiting a foreign harbor.”
Agencies
Published: 23 Aug 2024, 10:34 am IST
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