A Song Born from Fire, Faith, and Freedom
Every time we stand to sing The Star-Spangled Banner, we recall a night of great uncertainty—and a morning of enduring hope.
The War That Threatened a Nation
In the dark days of the War of 1812, the young United States faced the might of the British Empire once again. In August 1814, British troops stormed Washington, D.C., burning the Capitol and the White House. Their next target: Baltimore, Maryland.
Guarding Baltimore’s harbor stood Fort McHenry. If the fort fell, so might the city—and with it, a critical piece of America’s future.
A Lawyer Caught in the Crossfire
Enter Francis Scott Key, a 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet. He had sailed into Chesapeake Bay under a flag of truce to negotiate the release of an American civilian held aboard a British ship. Though the mission was successful, Key and his companions were detained temporarily—they had overheard plans for the impending attack on Baltimore.
As the British fleet began bombarding Fort McHenry on September 13, 1814, Key was forced to watch from a distance aboard a ship. For 25 hours, the sky lit up with “the rockets’ red glare” and “bombs bursting in air.” All night long, the fate of the fort—and the nation—hung in the balance.
A Flag Still There
At dawn, as smoke cleared over the harbor, Key peered toward the fort. What he saw brought him to tears: the American flag—still flying.
Inspired, he jotted down lines of verse on the back of an envelope:
“O say can you see, by the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming…”
He would later refine the poem and set it to the melody of a popular English tune, To Anacreon in Heaven. The song quickly spread across the country under the name The Star-Spangled Banner.
From a Poem to a National Anthem
Though beloved for generations, it wasn’t until March 3, 1931, that Congress officially declared The Star-Spangled Banner the national anthem of the United States. President Herbert Hoover signed the bill into law.
The Flag That Inspired It All
The original “star-spangled banner” still exists—a massive 30-by-42-foot flag with 15 stars and 15 stripes, made by Baltimore seamstress Mary Pickersgill. Today, it is carefully preserved and displayed at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C.
A Legacy That Endures
More than just a song, The Star-Spangled Banner is a testament to resilience, sacrifice, and the enduring spirit of a free people. It reminds us that even in our darkest hours, hope can rise with the dawn—and freedom’s flag can yet wave.
“O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?”
