Our Star-Spangled Symbol

It's the 200th Anniversary of the composition of "The Star-Spangled Banner".  Francis Scott Key, a Georgetown lawyer, wrote it in ecstasy at seeing the Stars and Stripes flying above Fort McHenry in the early morning light of September 14, 1814, as the British abandoned an assault on Baltimore, MD.  He was being held aboard a British ship at that moment after successfully negotiating the release of a prisoner, Dr. Beanes a few days earlier.

We in general are familiar with the first verse of the song, which is the verse usually sung when it's performed.  But I always feel that singing the first verse only cuts off the narrative that all four verses tell together about "Defense of Fort McHenry", which was the title first given to the poem when it was first printed.  The lyrics tell about the triumph that comes in a bleak time in the War of 1812, just weeks after the British burned Washington, D.C.

The song speaks of the US flag as the illustrious symbol of our country.  There was much joy to be had when Mr. Key saw the flag still flying above Fort McHenry, sensing the triumph of the nation against its enemy.  It is a triumph that continues in each generation of Americans as we strive against and overcome the evils within and beyond us so that what is noble and right prevails proudly above as does the flag flying high.

Here's to our Star-Spangled Symbol...

Here I am with my Mom in the National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C.  In the background is an artistic representation of the American flag, at the entrance to a special gallery displaying the original Star-Spangled Banner that Francis Scott Key saw that morning 200 years ago.  It's quite a thing to see.  (Just outside the gallery, an interpreter portrayed Mary Pickersgill, the woman who helped make the flag.)