True History - Veritas Card #31 -The War of 1812

The War of 1812 - 1812 - 1815

O! 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 through the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there;
O! say does that star-spangled banner yet wave,
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?


Those are the words penned by Francis Scott Key called, 'The Star Spangled Banner' which is our country's national anthem.

Great Britain and America were not getting along well during this time. There was still tension between them in spite of the Treaty of Paris. The English were at war with France and needed manpower, so they put pressure on Americans so they could use them in their service. They also blockaded American trade. There were many important battles that were won on water. Commodore Perry won a great victory on Lake Erie. He said "We have met the enemy, and they are ours." The British ships were challenged by the American ships in superiority. 

   The British navy invaded Washington D.C., and burned the Capitol and the White House. Also burned were several governmental buildings and individual homes. The President's wife, Dolly Madison, managed to cut a picture of George Washington out of the frame, and ran out of the White House with it. Then the British made their way to Baltimore, but American troops stopped them at Fort McHenry. This is where Francis Scott Key wrote our national anthem, The Star Spangled Banner. When he awoke the next morning, he saw that the flag was still standing, and penned the words for the song.

                                                      

If you go through that part of Maryland, where Fort McHenry was, you might go through a tunnel. It is called, 'Ft. McHenry Tunnel'.