Francis Scott Key wrote “The Stars Spangled Banner” on September 14, 1814. He had been detained on a British warship and watched through the night as the British bombarded Fort McHenry in Baltimore harbor. Here are the words to Key’s poem that eventually became our national anthem.
"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, through the perilous fight,
O’er the ramparts we watch 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 “Stars Spangled Banner” yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave."
Short Essay Writing Question:
Write how you think Key felt when he wrote this poem? Explain.
