"God Save the South" is a poem-turned-song considered by some to have been the unofficial national anthem of the Confederate States of America. The words were written in 1861 by George Henry Miles, under the pen name Earnest Halphin. It was the first song published in the Confederate States—specifically, in New Orleans, Louisiana—since the Ordinance of Secession<!--which one?-->. The hymn was later included in The Soldier's Companion, the hymnal distributed to all Confederate soldiers.
Some considered "God Save The South" the de facto national anthem of the Confederacy. The song was published in Virginia with the subtitle "Our national Confederate anthem" with the image of a Confederate soldier carrying the Stainless Banner with the words "God Save The South" on it.
Composition
While the anthem mostly used Ellerbrock's music, it was also set to the tune of the British national anthem, "God Save the King". Because of this association, as well as a perceived lack of originality, “God Save the South” was criticized in Southern Punch, a weekly periodical modeled after Britain’s Punch. De Cœniél wrote another tune for "God Save the South" after Ellerbrock's original.
The fifth verse has been cited as an example of the citizens of the Confederacy's perceived affiliation with George Washington, a rebel of the American Revolutionary War.