You have probably heard "The Star-Spangled Banner" at football games, baseball games, and school assemblies. You know the tune, and maybe you know some of the words. But do you know the incredible true story behind our national anthem? It involves a battle, a giant flag, a long night of explosions, and one man watching from a boat, hoping and praying.

The War of 1812

First, some background. In 1812, the United States went to war with Great Britain again. We had already fought them in the Revolutionary War, but the British had a powerful navy and were not happy that America had become an independent country. British ships attacked American ports, and British soldiers even burned parts of Washington, D.C., including the White House!

After attacking Washington, the British turned their attention to Baltimore, Maryland, and Fort McHenry, the fort that protected Baltimore's harbor.

Francis Scott Key

Francis Scott Key was a 35-year-old lawyer from Maryland. He was not a soldier, but he sailed out to the British fleet under a flag of truce to negotiate the release of an American prisoner, a doctor named William Beanes who had been captured by the British.

The British agreed to release Dr. Beanes, but there was a catch: Key and his companions had seen the British fleet and knew their plans. The British would not let them return to shore until after the attack on Fort McHenry was over. So Key, Beanes, and their companion were stuck on a boat in the harbor, watching the battle unfold.

The Bombardment

On September 13, 1814, the British began bombarding Fort McHenry. They fired rockets and mortar shells at the fort for 25 hours straight, all through the day and all through the night. Key watched from about eight miles away. The explosions lit up the sky, and as long as he could see the flashes, he knew the fort was still being attacked.

But here is the thing: as long as the fort was being attacked, it meant the Americans had not surrendered. The question that kept Key awake all night was this - when morning comes, will the American flag still be flying over the fort? Or will it be the British flag?

The Morning

As dawn broke on September 14, Key strained his eyes through the smoke and haze. And there it was, the American flag, still flying over Fort McHenry. Not just any flag, either. The fort commander, Major George Armistead, had ordered an enormous flag specifically so the British could see it from a distance. It measured 30 feet by 42 feet, about the size of a small house!

The British attack had failed. Baltimore was saved. And Francis Scott Key was so moved by the sight of that flag still waving that he began writing a poem on the back of a letter he had in his pocket.

The Poem Becomes a Song

Key finished his poem and titled it "Defence of Fort M'Henry." It was printed in newspapers and quickly became popular. Someone set the words to a well-known tune called "To Anacreon in Heaven," and it spread across the country. People started calling it "The Star-Spangled Banner."

In 1931, Congress officially made it our national anthem.

The Words - First Verse

Here is the first verse, the one we sing at events:

O say can you see, by the dawn's early light, What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming, Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight, O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming? And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air, Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there; O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

Now that you know the story, those words mean so much more, right? Key is literally asking: after all that bombing, is our flag still there?

Activities

Listen together: Find a recording of "The Star-Spangled Banner" and listen as a family. Try a traditional version and maybe a unique one. Whitney Houston's Super Bowl performance is legendary.

Read the words: Print out the first verse and go through it line by line. What is Key describing? Can you picture it?

Draw the scene: Imagine you are on that boat with Key. Draw what the battle might have looked like at night, and then draw the morning when the flag was visible.

Discussion Questions

• How do you think Key felt during that long night?
• Why was the flag so important to him?
• What does it feel like when you hear the anthem at a game or event?