The longer version - of both the song and the story of the man who wrote it - reveals not only why it has become controversial now, in this season of racial reckoning, football and presidential campaigning, but why it was too controversial to become the national anthem for more than a century after it was written.įirst, a few things to know about the War of 1812: One of the main issues was the British practice of impressment - the forced conscription of American sailors to fight for the Royal Navy. That’s the short version of how “The Star-Spangled Banner” came to be. Soon, it was set to the tune of an existing song. But at dawn, he saw the American flag, 15 stars and 15 stripes at the time, still waving over the fort and was inspired to write a poem. He couldn’t tell from his vantage point who had won or lost. That’s how Key ended up witnessing the bombardment of Fort McHenry while aboard a British ship. He and the doctor would not be allowed to leave until the attack was over. But while on the ship, the man - a 35-year-old lawyer named Francis Scott Key - overheard plans for a surprise attack on Baltimore. The mission was successful British commanders agreed to free the doctor. A friend of the doctor sailed on a ship flying a truce flag to negotiate a prisoner exchange with the Royal Navy. The British had also taken prisoners, including a popular doctor from Prince George’s County in Maryland. The conflict became known as the War of 1812, even though it was in its third year. The British had sacked Washington and torched the White House.
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