Germany's navy clarified this week that there was "no deeper message" behind the choice to play Darth Vader's theme, the Imperial March, from one of its warships as it sailed down the River Thames in London. This spectacle, caught on video by a bystander, swiftly went viral on social media. The German warship was in the region for training exercises and made a routine supply stop in London, as confirmed by the navy.
The commanding officer of the Braunschweig, the warship in question, has free rein over musical selections, per the navy. Upon the ship's arrival in London, it played "London Calling," a 1979 track by The Clash.
The Braunschweig, named after a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, is part of the newest class of ocean-going corvettes. This marked the ship's second trip to London, as mentioned by the German Embassy on the social media platform X. The embassy also noted that the commander "is a big 'Star Wars' fan and an admirer of the legendary musical scores of John Williams," and he selects a different Williams composition for each visit to a foreign port. (This story was generated by Newser's AI chatbot. Source: the AP)
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