"The Rockets' Red Glare": Francis Scott Key and the Bombardment of Fort McHenry

The man standing on the deck of the sailing ship had opposed the war. Now he watched helplessly as ships from the world's most powerful navy rained cannon fire on the small fort guarding Baltimore, Maryland. Despite his earlier opposition, he found himself desperately hoping for an American victory. The bombardment had already lasted more than 24 hours. Straining to see through the morning mist, he finally spotted it: a huge American flag, large enough for the enemy to see that the fort had held. Francis Scott Key was overwhelmed with "joyful triumph" and began scribbling words on a scrap of paper: "O say can you see . . . ."

Key wrote his poem in 1814, during the final year of the War of 1812. The United States had declared war on Great Britain in June 1812, but at first the British were too occupied fighting France to spare much attention for their former colonies. Once the French emperor Napoleon gave up his throne in April 1814, however, Britain turned its full military strength toward teaching the Americans a lesson. That August, fifty British ships sailed up Chesapeake Bay. After capturing Washington, D.C., on August 24 and burning the Capitol, the White House, and other government buildings, the British army and navy turned north toward Baltimore. Fort McHenry stood directly between the British fleet and the city. When the fort refused to surrender, the British ships withdrew — to the cheers of the American defenders. Many Americans came to see the War of 1812 as a "Second War of Independence."

Few people today remember much about the War of 1812 itself. But the poem it inspired — set to music almost immediately and known as "The Star-Spangled Banner" — went on to become the national anthem of the United States. It remains a powerful symbol that unites Americans, especially in times of crisis.

Document Contents

National Curriculum Standards

About This Lesson

Getting Started: Inquiry Question

Setting the Stage: Historical Context

Locating the Site: Map

1. Map 1: Baltimore and Fort McHenry in 1814

Determining the Facts: Readings

1. Reading 1: Armistead's Account of the Battle
2. Reading 2: Francis Scott Key and the Writing of "The Star-Spangled Banner"
3. Reading 3: "Defence of Fort McHenry"
4. Reading 4: After the Battle

Visual Evidence: Images

1. Illustration 1: Fort McHenry in 1814
2. Photo 1: The Walls at Fort McHenry
3. Illustration 2: The Battle of Baltimore
4. Illustration 3: "A View of the Bombardment of Fort McHenry"
5. Photo 2: Fort McHenry Today
6. Photo 3: The Star-Spangled Banner Today
7. Illustration 4: "Star-Spangled Heart"

Putting It All Together: Activities

1. Activity 1: "You Are There"
2. Activity 2: Debating the War of 1812
3. Activity 3: "The Theme of Our Nation"
4. Activity 4: Whose "Star-Spangled Banner"?
5. Activity 5: Places That Define the Community

Where This Lesson Fits Into the Curriculum

Time Period: Mid-19th to mid-20th century

Topics: This lesson works well in American history, social studies, government, and civics classes covering the War of 1812, the early years of the federal government, and American political history.

Relevant United States History Standards for Grades 5–12

This lesson supports the following National Standards for History from the UCLA National Center for History in the Schools:

US History Era 4

Standard 1A: Students understand the international background and consequences of the Louisiana Purchase, the War of 1812, and the Monroe Doctrine.

Relevant Curriculum Standards for Social Studies

This lesson supports the following Curriculum Standards for Social Studies from the National Council for the Social Studies:

Theme I: Culture

• Standard C: Students explain and give examples of how language, literature, the arts, architecture, other cultural objects, traditions, beliefs, values, and behaviors help develop and pass on a culture.

Theme II: Time, Continuity and Change

• Standard A: Students understand that different scholars may describe the same event or situation differently but must support their views with reasons or evidence.
• Standard B: Students use key concepts such as chronology (time order), causality (cause and effect), change, conflict, and complexity to explain, analyze, and connect patterns of historical change and continuity.
• Standard C: Students identify and describe historical periods and patterns of change within and across cultures — for example, the rise of civilizations, the growth of transportation systems, and the rise and fall of colonial empires.
• Standard D: Students use methods important to reconstructing and reinterpreting the past — such as using varied sources, weighing evidence for claims, checking whether sources are trustworthy, and searching for causes.

Theme III: People, Places and Environments

• Standard A: Students build mental maps of places, regions, and the world that show understanding of relative location, direction, size, and shape.
• Standard B: Students create, interpret, use, and distinguish between different representations of Earth, such as maps, globes, and photographs.
• Standard G: Students describe how people build places — neighborhoods, parks, shopping centers, and similar spaces — that reflect their cultural values and ideals.
• Standard I: Students describe how historical events have been shaped by, and have in turn shaped, physical and human geography at local, regional, national, and global levels.

Theme IV: Individual Development and Identity

• Standard B: Students describe their personal connections to places tied to community, nation, and world.
• Standard C: Students describe how family, gender, ethnicity, nationality, and group memberships shape personal identity.
• Standard E: Students identify and describe how regional, ethnic, and national cultures influence people's daily lives.
• Standard F: Students identify and describe how perception, attitudes, values, and beliefs shape personal identity.
• Standard H: Students work independently and cooperatively to reach goals.

Theme V: Individuals, Groups, and Institutions

• Standard B: Students analyze how groups and institutions influence people, events, and elements of culture.

Theme VI: Power, Authority and Governance

• Standard C: Students analyze and explain ideas and government tools used to meet citizens' needs, regulate territory, manage conflict, and maintain order and security.
• Standard F: Students explain the conditions, actions, and motives that lead to conflict and cooperation among nations.
• Standard G: Students describe and analyze the role technology plays in communication, transportation, information processing, weapons development, and other areas that contribute to or help resolve conflicts.
• Standard I: Students give examples and explain how governments try to achieve their stated ideals at home and abroad.

Theme IX: Global Connections

• Standard B: Students analyze examples of conflict, cooperation, and interdependence (mutual reliance) among groups, societies, and nations.

Theme X: Civic Ideals and Practices

• Standard A: Students examine the origins and continuing influence of core ideals of democratic republican government, such as individual human dignity, liberty, justice, equality, and the rule of law.
• Standard C: Students locate, access, analyze, organize, and apply information about public issues, recognizing and explaining multiple points of view.
• Standard D: Students practice forms of civic discussion and participation consistent with the ideals of citizens in a democratic republic.

Relevant Common Core Standards

This lesson supports the following Common Core English Language Arts Standards for History and Social Studies, for middle school and high school students:

Key Ideas and Details

• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.2

Craft and Structure

• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.7
• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.6

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas

• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.7

Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity

• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.10

About This Lesson

This lesson is based on the National Register of Historic Places registration file "Fort McHenry" (http://pdfhost.focus.nps.gov/docs/NRHP/Text/66000907.pdf), which includes photographs (http://pdfhost.focus.nps.gov/docs/NRHP/Photos/66000907.pdf); on The Star-Spangled Banner: The Making of an American Icon, written by Lonn Taylor, Kathleen M. Kendrick, and Jeffrey L. Brodie; and on materials prepared for Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine. It was published in 2009. Marilyn Harper, a former Teaching with Historic Places historian, wrote this lesson, and it was edited by Teaching with Historic Places staff. This lesson is part of a series that brings important stories from historic places into classrooms nationwide.

Objectives

1. To describe the events of September 12–14, 1814, as reported by the commander of Fort McHenry.
2. To describe the fort and how it withstood the British bombardment.
3. To explain how "The Star-Spangled Banner" came to be written and to analyze the meaning of its lyrics.
4. To identify how the American victory and "The Star-Spangled Banner" have contributed — and continue to contribute — to Americans' pride in and connection to their nation.
5. To identify and investigate places that matter to the local community's identity and civic pride.

Materials for Students

The materials below can be used directly on a computer or printed out, photocopied, and distributed to students.

1. One map showing Baltimore Harbor and Fort McHenry.
2. Two documents: the official report on the bombardment and the original printed broadside version of "Defence of Fort McHenry."
3. Two readings: one about the writing of the poem that became "The Star-Spangled Banner," and one about the later history of the War of 1812 and the song.
4. Four illustrations: an image of the fort, two depictions of the battle, and a World War II poster.
5. Three photographs of the fort and the preserved flag today.

Visiting the Site

Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine is located at 2400 East Fort Avenue in Baltimore.