Hakkapeliittain Marssi
or is a Finnish and Swedish military march, and one of the oldest currently played.
Background
The march originates from the times of Thirty Years' War when a Finnish light cavalryman was known as a Hakkapeliitta, and it became popular with military bands. Its most familiar lyrics were written in 1872 by Fenno-Swedish poet Zacharias Topelius; the piece is commonly known as the "March of the Finnish Cavalry during the Thirty Years War". The Prussian army officially adopted it for use in 1891; it is now a standard of the German marching band repertoire.In Finland the march is currently the honorary march of the Finnish Army and the Defence Command. Previously the march was used by Häme Cavalry Regiment and Uusimaa Dragoon Regiment with their respective trumpet signals. The march is also the official regimental march of the Swedish Småland Grenadier Corps, the Karlskrona Grenadier Regiment, the, the Norrbotten Regiment and the Norrbotten Brigade.
In 1939, Finnish composer Uuno Klami developed a free orchestral version of this theme under the title, Op. 28. The Finnish poet Eino Leino published another Hakkapeliittain Marssi as part of a collection by the name of Tähtitarha in 1912.