I am so tired of historians quoting Thatcher's dismay ("a dagger to my heart”) about German MPs singing “Deutschland über alles” in the Bundestag on the night when the Berlin Wall fell, without pointing out that THEY DID NOT. They sang “Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit”. /1

It is the same melody but an entirely different text. Originally both part of one song. The former was v. popular under the Nazis. The latter is our national anthem since 1952. One thing for her not to know that. But I think historians writing about her 30 years later should. /2

Whether or not W-German MPs were singing a Nazi song on a crucial night leading to German reunification is a rather important detail. And yet, several books I have read do not take the trouble of pointing that out. Here is a video of the evening. /3 https://www.bundestag.de/dokumente/textarchiv/2014/kw45_mauerfall-337756

PS: I have seen this omission made in books written by Eurosceptic AND Europhile writers, by Thatcherites and left-wing scholars. It is probably just laziness. But that is no excuse.

PPS: could people responding to this thread please read all of it (all 4 tweets). It will save them (and me) a lot of time. Thank you.