Francis Scott Key was the author of The Star-Spangled Banner. In 1814, Key wrote a poem about what he observed during the Fort McHenry battle. The first time the poem was published was in Baltimore newspapers and spread along the East coast in seventeen other newspapers. Also, in 1916 Woodrow Wilson declared it to be the national anthem of the armed forces. Although it wasn’t until March of 1931 for the poem, originally called “The Defence of Fort McHenry”, to be announced as America’s national anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner.” The song is a symbol of national pride and we continue to sing this to show our nation’s endurance through the war. The song was first performed in 1889 by the United States Navy during a ceremony that lowered and raised the flag. The first public performance was on October 19, 1814. A Baltimore theater, known as the “Old Drury,” performed the song after a play. The United States Marine Band played the anthem publicly in 1890. The U.S. Army and U.S. Military Academy at West Point both …show more content…
The lyrics are what Key was thinking as he was on the ship witnessing the fight. He had only seen the war happening in the sky and he thought the British were going to win. As “the dawn’s early light” began to show, Key was able to see the American flag tall and waving in the air. This shows that Key wrote about what he saw at the war site. There are four verses, but some lines about slaves that have caused people to talk. The lines were, “No refuge could save the hireling and slave” and “From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave.” But the fourth verse explains that the freedmen were free slaves in the lines, “O thus be it ever when freemen shall stand” and “Between their lov’d home and the war’s desolation.” The alliance of America and England caused the removal of the line, “Their blood has wash’d out their foul footstep’s