I was lead to explore a bit, and enjoyed reading the history of this beautiful song. Francis Scott Key, a new, young poet, had watched as the ships of the Royal Navy bombarded Fort McHenry in the Chesapeake Bay in the War of 1812. After viewing this event during the Battle of Baltimore, he penned the poem "Defense of Fort McHenry". One source that I read said that the tune used for the music was that of a British drinking song written by a John Stafford Smith for a men's social club in London.
It was the Navy that used "The Star Spangled Banner" officially in 1889, and in March of 1931 it was made our National Anthem by a resolution of Congress, signed by President Herbert Hoover.
Please enjoy once again the words, and always remember the things that have made our Nation great, and if the holiday weekend keeps me from returning to this blog, I wish you a happy 4th of July, happy birthday, America!
Oh, 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 thru the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
On the shore, dimly seen through the mists of the deep,
Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam,
In full glory reflected now shines in the stream:
'Tis the star-spangled banner! Oh long may it wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!
And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle's confusion,
A home and a country should leave us no more!
Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps' pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave:
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!
Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved home and the war's desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust."
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!
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4 comments:
I've never seen all the words before. Thank you for sharing this bit of history - for those of us away from your shores, it's nice to learn some more about your country.
Imagine how he must have been feeling as he watched the fight. What a relief to see our flag still flying. I think we take our freedoms for granted too often. Thanks for sharing.
It really is hard to imagine what it was like 200+ years ago, the closest thing that I can remember in recent time is seeing the flag raised from the rubble of the World Trade Center after we were attacked, not an hour from our home. An awesome moment that I hope we will not forget in the coming years. Thanks for stopping by, Heidi.
Kathie,
Glad you enjoyed reading this, the last verse is not as commonly used, I read somewhere, but I like it a lot. It is interesting to just read the words without the music because in some ways you can take for granted words that you sing all the time. Hope you had a nice Canada Day last week!
Claudia :-)
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