William Beanes, the elderly and popular town physician of Upper Marlboro and a friend of Key's who had been captured in his home. Their objective was to secure the exchange of prisoners, one of whom was Dr. On September 3, 1814, following the Burning of Washington and the Raid on Alexandria, Francis Scott Key and John Stuart Skinner set sail from Baltimore aboard the ship HMS Minden, flying a flag of truce on a mission approved by President James Madison. It is now on display at the Maryland Historical Society.

4 References in film, television, literatureįrancis Scott Key's original manuscript copy of his 'Star-Spangled Banner' poem.

Following the War of 1812 and subsequent American wars, other songs would emerge to compete for popularity at public events, among them 'The Star-Spangled Banner'. ' My Country, 'Tis of Thee', whose melody is identical to ' God Save the Queen', the British national anthem, also served as a de facto anthem.

' Hail, Columbia' served this purpose at official functions for most of the 19th century. § 301), which was signed by President Herbert Hoover.īefore 1931, other songs served as the hymns of American officialdom. 'The Star-Spangled Banner' was recognized for official use by the Navy in 1889, and by President Woodrow Wilson in 1916, and was made the national anthem by a congressional resolution on Ma(46 Stat. Although the poem has four stanzas, only the first is commonly sung today. With a range of one and a half octaves, it is known for being difficult to sing. Set to Key's poem and renamed 'The Star-Spangled Banner', it would soon become a well-known American patriotic song.

'The Anacreontic Song' (or ' To Anacreon in Heaven'), with various lyrics, was already popular in the United States.

The poem was set to the tune of a popular British song written by John Stafford Smith for the Anacreontic Society, a men's social club in London. The lyrics come from 'Defence of Fort M'Henry', a poem written in 1814 by the 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet, Francis Scott Key, after witnessing the bombardment of Fort McHenry by British ships of the Royal Navy in Chesapeake Bay during the Battle of Fort McHenry in the War of 1812. ' The Star-Spangled Banner' is the national anthem of the United States.

The star spangled banner song poet