Our National Anthem

Frederick's Francis Scott Key wrote the Star Spangled Banner after watching American troops get shellacked by a British bombardment of Fort McHenry in the Battle of Baltimore in 1814. The flag that remained flying, and that inspired Key, is now one of the most cherished possessions of the Smithsonian. Actually, Key only wrote the words to the Star Spangled Banner; the music itself is from The Anacreontic Song, a drinking song popular in London. Woodrow Wilson liked it enough to order it played by military bands, and Congress passed legislation making it the National Anthem in 1931.

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