The Story of "The Star Spangled Banner"

One of the cultural landmarks to emerge from the War of 1812 was the penning of the Star Spangled Banner by 35-year-old Washington, DC attorney and journeyman poet Francis Scott Key. Key wrote the words to a poem he originally called, “The Defense of Fort McHenry” after watching the British naval bombardment of the Baltimore stronghold on the evening of September 13 -14, 1814.