William Beanes, who also happened to be a colleague of Key. Though opposed to the war due to his religious beliefs and believing that the disagreement could be settled without armed conflict, Key nonetheless served in the Georgetown Light Field Artillery.īritish forces captured Washington, D.C., in 1814. The ensuing hostilities would come to be known as the War of 1812. seamen and the disruption of trade with France. War of 1812īy the early 1810s, the United States had entered into conflict with Britain over the kidnapping of U.S. By 1805, he'd set up his legal practice in Georgetown, then an independent municipality within Washington, D.C. Key wed Mary "Polly" Taylor Lloyd in the early 1800s, and the couple would go on to have 11 children. John's College, ultimately returning to his home county to set up practice as a lawyer. He was educated at home until the age of 10 and then attended an Annapolis grammar school. Early Life and Careerįrancis Scott Key was born on August 1, 1779, in Frederick County, Maryland, to a wealthy clan on the plantation of Terra Rubra. national anthem, "The Star-Spangled Banner." Key later served as a district attorney for Washington, D.C. The fort withstood the day-long assault, inspiring Key to write a poem that would become the future U.S. Words were put to music and the song was adopted as the American national anthem, first by an executive order from Woodrow Wilson in 1916 and then by a Congressional resolution in 1931, signed by President Herbert Hoover.Born in 1779, Francis Scott Key became a lawyer who witnessed the British attack on Fort McHenry during the War of 1812. Within weeks, it would be reprinted in publications across the land. This impromptu scribbling would become a masterful work of prose, originally titled "The Defence of Fort McHenry." Days later, Key's ode to the national flag would appear in local newspapers. When daylight came, the three men were astonished to see the 15-star American flag still flying atop Fort McHenry.Īn amateur poet, Francis Scott Key was inspired to write his thoughts on the back of a letter. all the while with Key, Skinner and Beanes witnessing from their unique vantage point. The battle commenced in the early morning of September 13th and lasted for 25 hours. However, the three would be detained aboard a British sloop during the naval bombardment of Fort McHenry in the Baltimore Harbor. At first the British refused to give up the physician from Upper Marlboro, but eventually relented. John Skinner, an American agent for prisoner exchange, Key set sail for Baltimore under a flag of truce approved by President James Madison. William Beanes, captured by invading British forces in late August, 1814. During the War of 1812, Francis Scott Key was summoned to gain the release of a friend, Dr. The bombardment of Baltimore's Fort McHenry, September 13-14, 1814. Francis Scott Key died in Baltimore, Maryland on January 11th, 1843 at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Instead, he decided to use his talent as a strong writer, effective speaker and quick, logical thinker in the courts of law. Throughout his lifetime, Francis Scott Key was a dutiful Christian and once considered entering the ministry. Key would eventually relocate the family to Georgetown in an effort to conduct his law career in the nation's capital in association with his uncle, Philip Barton Key. The couple had a large family consisting of 11 children (6 sons/5 daughters). Francis Scott Key wed Mary Tayloe Lloyd of Annapolis. Francis Scott Key's sister Anne married Roger Brooke Taney, another Frederick attorney, and later, the fifth Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court. He would come back home to Frederick to begin his legal practice in 1801. The son of a Revolutionary war lieutenant, Key studied law in the state capital of Annapolis. Today this area is now part of Carroll County, Maryland. Francis Scott Key was born in Frederick County on August 1st, 1779 at his family's plantation estate of Terra Rubra.
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