Discover here all about The National Anthem of the USA

Do you want to know the name of the national anthem of the United States ?

Notes that The Star-Spangled Banner is the name of the national anthem of the United States of America.

It was written in 1814 by Francis Scott Key. He wrote it after witnessing the Anglo-American War of 1812, the bombardment of Fort McHenry in Baltimore, Maryland, by British ships of the Royal Navy entering the Chesapeake Bay. The text of this hymn pays tribute to the heroic resistance of those who defended the fort and were able to fly the American flag atop it despite the enemy’s relentless efforts to plant theirs there.

Here are the lyrics of the national anthem of the USA :

the national anthem of the usa

Oh, say can you see by the dawn’s early light

What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming ?

Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight,

O’er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming ?

And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,

Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.

Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave

O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave ?

On the shore, dimly seen through the mists of the deep,

Where the foe’s haughty host in dread silence reposes,

What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep,

As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses ?

Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam,

In full glory reflected now shines in the stream :

‘Tis the star-spangled banner! Oh long may it wave

O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave !

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore

That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion,

A home and a country should leave us no more !

Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps’ pollution.

No refuge could save the hireling and slave

From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave :
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave

O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave !

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand

Between their loved home and the war’s desolation !

Blest with victory and peace, may the heav’n rescued land

Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.

Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,

And this be our motto : “In God is our trust.”

And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave

O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave !

Explanation of the national anthem of the USA :

The meaning of “Star-Spangled Banner”, the name of the American anthem, is “Flag adorned with stars”.

The expression can also be correctly translated as “the bright banner of stars”. The protagonist of the song is in fact the American flag that flew over Fort McHenry (a military fort near Baltimore) on the morning of September 14, 1814 after a night of bombardment with which the British tried to force the American soldiers to surrender but were unable to do so.

In the American epic, the protagonist of the confrontation was the flag that continued to fly under the bombs and rockets of the British fleet throughout the night of September 13-14 (lowering the flag was considered a sign of surrender, while being able to shoot it down with a precise blow was considered bad luck for the defenders). The first verse of Key’s poem describes the “star” flag still flying on the morning of September 14.

History of the national anthem of the USA :

The Star Spangled Banner is the American national anthem. Written during the Baltimore Resistance in 1814, it was adopted as the national anthem by Congress in 1931.

The American national anthem is called “The Star Spangled Banner”, in reference to the famous star-spangled flag.

The text dates back to the last century and is attributed to a lawyer, a certain Francis Scott Kay, who visited Baltimore on September 13, 1814 during a settler rebellion. To be safe, he spent the night in a boat anchored in the city’s harbor, while Fort McHenry was being bombarded by the British who wanted to put down the colonists’ rebellion.

The next morning, Mr. Kay noted with great joy that, despite the 25 hours of bombardment, the American flag was still raised on the mast, in its place, as a sign of victory. Carried away by understandable emotion and strong patriotism, he composed the poem describing the scenes he had witnessed during the night and the preceding days.

That is why the hymn is often subtitled “Defense of Fort McHenry”.

The text immediately became very popular. As for the music, however, its origins are more uncertain. The melody is known to pre-exist the text, and the song “To Anacreon in Heaven” (to the notes of which Kay’s poem was later adapted) is attributed to John Stafford Smith, an English composer of the 1700s. The first adaptation of Kay’s poem and Smith’s music are attributed to a Benjamin Carr of Baltimore.

After being the official anthem of the U.S. Army and Navy, the U.S. Congress adopted “The Star Spangled Banner” as the national anthem in 1931.

Devotion to this anthem, as well as to the flag, is very high among Americans. When its notes are heard, almost all Americans stand at attention, hand on chest, and join in the singing. Those Americans who do not know the words of their anthem by heart can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

Role of a national anthem

A national anthem is music intended to represent a state at an official event.

The anthem spreads the identity of a country and contributes to awaken and maintain the feeling of belonging. These songs, often lyrical, express joy and enthusiasm and arouse the emotion of the public during their performance.

The anthem participates in the political ritual. It is generally played by civilian or military bands during official ceremonies or sports events.

Used as a symbol and emblem in the same way as the flag, the motto or the national holiday, it is the sound signature of a state, personifying it and unifying it.

As in ancient times, songs and poems glorify gods or important people. The hymn is thus associated for a long time with the religious ritual.

Hymns are therefore historical witnesses as well as emblems of the emergence of nation states.

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