Instead our anthem is a poetic front-line account of the darkest moment of one long night of war, with all the melancholy and insecurity an existential crisis could muster. Ours could have been like theirs had our national anthem been “My Country, ’Tis of Thee” or “America the Beautiful”-two of the contenders for that honor before Congress settled the question in 1931.

The national anthems of most countries are drawn from broad themes with many common elements: God’s blessings, past glories and bright futures, and lots of geography lessons. This is the first verse of the “Star-Spangled Banner.” Breaking it down line-by-line reveals some words and phrases that, despite being sung so often, may not make sense to most people.When it is time to honor their homelands, the Hungarians sing an epic poem of ancestors crossing the Carpathian Mountains, the Mongolians of the impressive ancestry of their people, and the Japanese of best wishes for their emperor. O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave? What Does the National Anthem Mean? O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave Gave proof thro’ the night that our flag was still there. O’er the ramparts we watch’d, were so gallantly streaming?Īnd the rockets’ red glare, the bombs bursting in air,

Whose broad stripes and bright stars, thro’ the perilous fight,

What so proudly we hail’d at the twilight’s last gleaming? O say, can you see, by the dawn’s early light, While Key penned three more verses in addition to the well-known first verse, these are the only words that most Americans know: Some time later, Key’s brother-in-law paired the poem with the tune of the English drinking song “To Anacreon in Heaven” by John Stafford Smith and began distributing the song as “Defence of Fort M’Henry.” Eventually, the song was published in the Baltimore Patriot newspaper and soon after spread across the country as “The Star-Spangled Banner.” It was played at official events across the nation, officially becoming the national anthem in 1931. Still aboard the British vessel, Key began to pen the words that would later become the American national anthem. After a day and a long night in which Key thought for certain that the American fort was doomed, he was shocked when the early morning light revealed that the American flag was still there.

Full song star spangled banner lyrics