Fact check: The folded flag is not reserved exclusively for veterans While there are some details that differ from the Surgernor video, it is the same story. The restoration was completed in 2008 at a total cost in excess of $21 million. Why were the citizens of Baltimore so well prepared for a British attack? Often lost in the near-mythic symbolism attached to this moment in the American consciousness is the fact that Fort McHenrys commander, Major George Armistead, did not order the flag hoisted in a special act of triumph or defiance. Everything was made ready at Fort McHenry to defend Baltimore. Part of the larger Battle of Baltimore, the Battle of Fort McHenry saw the fort's garrison defeat a British fleet that had been advancing on the city. Send Students on School Field Trips to Battlefields Your Gift Tripled! "[54], Smithsonian National Museum of American History. More than two hundred years since the perilous fight" over Baltimore, the legacies of the Old Defenders of Baltimore of 1814 are remembered annually on Defenders' Day.And the American flag now with 50 stars rather than 15 flies, by presidential proclamation, over Fort McHenry day and night. Now, as preparations for a British attack proceeded, the three-story-tall flag waved atop the 90-foot flagpole at Fort McHenry, its bold red, white and blue geometry unmistakable. It evokes powerful emotions and ideas about what it means to be an American. When Major George Armistead, the fort's commander, expressed the desire for a very large flag to fly over the fort, General John S. Stricker and Commodore Joshua Barney placed an order for two oversized American flags. In 1873, Georgiana loaned the flag to George Preble, a flag historian who until that time had thought the flag was lost. Bombardment of Fort McHenry Part 1 Commissioned by Major George Armistead, commander of Fort McHenry. It was with huge surprise and joy that as dawn broke, he saw, not the Union Jack flying above the fort, but the American flag. Let me tell you a story. This British defeat was a turning point in the War of 1812, leading both sides to reach a peace agreement later that year. The ship carried Colonel John S. Skinner, U.S. State Department prisoner exchange agent, and 35-year-old Georgetown attorney Francis Scott Key. Learn more about Mailchimp's privacy practices here. On the appointed day in a row boat, he (Key) went out to this boat and he negotiated with the British officials and they reached a conclusion that men could be exchanged on a one-for-one basis. The flag currently has only fourteen starsthe fifteenth star was similarly given as a gift, but its recipient and current whereabouts are unknown.[7]. And what he found had happened was that flag pole and that flag had suffered repetitious direct hits, and when hit had fallen, but men, fathers, who knew what it meant for that flag to be on the ground, although knowing that all of the British guns were trained on it, walked over and held it up humanly until they died. In 1907, Eben Appleton lent the flag to the Smithsonian, and it was put on display at the National Museum (now the Arts and Industries Building). He penned a song that I'm sure you are aware of, you've seen it. "The fact that it has been entrusted to the National Museum of American History is an honor.". Bodies of the dead were not used to hold up the flag pole a 42 by 30 foot flag has to be on a well-anchored pole, not held up by a few dead bodies stacked around it. Among the 20 low-draft vessels, primarily frigates and schooners, of the British squadron, five were particularly ominous. The admiral came and he said 'Your people are insane.' The American Battlefield Trust is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Right or left hand? Mary Pickersgill (born Mary Young; February 12, 1776 - October 4, 1857) was the maker, along with thirteen-year-old Grace Wisher, her African American enslaved servant, of the Star-Spangled Banner hoisted over Fort McHenry during the Battle of Baltimore in the War of 1812.The daughter of another noted flag maker, Rebecca Young, Pickersgill learned her craft from her mother, and, in 1813, was . He (the British admiral) said 'Don't worry about it.' Despite their feelings about disunion, the Armistead family made a specific effort to protect the flag that symbolized a preserved and united nation. There was no group of prisoners held in the cargo hold of the ship from where Key watched the battle. Because of the flag's size and the dimensions of the glass case it was displayed in, the public never saw the entire flag while it was housed in this location. They carried with them. At 9:00 a.m., Fort McHenrys massive garrison flag measuring an imposing 30'x 42' was raised over the ramparts, as four young fifers and drummers played the national tune Yankee Doodle. Aboard the frigate HMS Hebrus, a young midshipman remembered: And as the last vessel spread her canvas to the wind, the Americans hoisted a most superb and splendid ensign on theirbattery, and fired at the same time a gun of defiance.The great ensign, receiving the sun's early light, could be seen plainly for miles. Militarily, Baltimore was a far more important city than Washington because of its thriving port and strategic location. Please read this story before you angrily message this writer with accusations he is anti-American. In February 1815, the storm flag was lost to history after being replaced by a new one from the Schuylkill Arsenal in Philadelphia. George Washington never said that. He said 'The war is over, these men will be free anyway.'. Huge, vibrant, and rich in history, most Americans are familiar with the story of this particular flag: It's the one that flew overFort McHenrythe morning after the Battle of Baltimore during the War of 1812 and inspired Francis Scott Key to write the words that would one day become our national anthem. This could have resulted from metal buckles or straps or tacks on belts used to hold the flag. There were more than 15 states when the flag was made, but there are only 15 stars on the flag. It was, of course, the huge American flag that flew over Baltimore's Fort McHenry on a hot summer night in 1814. Every purchase supports the mission. And Francis Scott Key said 'What do you mean?' 7 things you didn't know about the Star-Spangled Banner He said 'How are you going to do that?' Spotted something? The United States declared war on Britain in June 1812 to protect free trade and sailors rights. Heading into a conflict against a country with such superior naval power was a daunting prospect for the young nation. And when the museum reopens in summer 2008, the Star-Spangled Banner will be its centerpiece, displayed in its own state-of-the-art gallery. The failed bombardment of Fort McHenryforced the British to abandon their land assault on the crucial port city of Baltimore. Accordingly, he launched a late evening diversionary barge attack on the western shore, the backdoor of the American land defenses. March 1, 2007 A conservator works on the Star-Spangled Banner in 1914. Show your pride in battlefield preservation by shopping in our store. Rewriting history is a dangerous thing, although the consequences of digesting this particular mythology may not lead to destruction. If you want fictional war accounts, we recommend Game of Thrones. Ross, hearing the skirmishing, rides forward to assess the situation. But just what did that flag, that for and those defenders endure?. The Confederate States of Americas first national flag was also known as the "Stars & Bars." Did dead bodies hold up the flag at Fort McHenry? It's called the 'National Anthem.' Sign up to receive the latest information on the American Battlefield Trust's efforts to blaze The Liberty Trail in South Carolina. So the old flag survives, bathed in dim light, floating out of the darkness, just as it did on that uncertain morning at Fort McHenry. [16] Historians suggest that the storm flag flew through the night, and the garrison flag was hoisted in the morning, after the British retreated.[17]. Sign up to receive the latest information on the American Battlefield Trust's efforts to blaze The Liberty Trail in South Carolina. She once noted, "[H]ad we given all that we have been importuned for little would be left to show." They allowed the Americans to return to their own vessel but continued guarding them. Francis Scott Key went down below and told the men what was about to happen. Entrance Fees The entrance fee to the historic area of the park is $15.00 for adults 16 years of age and older; children 15 and younger are free. Interestingly enough several African Americans found themselves fighting under the very same flag of the country that sought to enslave them. This is a far stronger defense than the British expect; they are outnumbered two to one. [23], The Armisteads' daughter, Georgiana Armistead Appleton, inherited the flag upon her mother's death in 1861. Now, here are the most obvious ways this video is filled with fake history: Francis Scott Key was a lawyer in Baltimore. Being held by the British on a truce ship in the Patapsco River, Key observed the battle from afar. "Our goal was to extend [the flag's] usable lifetime," says Suzanne Thomassen-Krauss, the conservator for the project. The British were more concerned with defeating Napoleon in Europe than fighting a minor war with the United States. In spite of their different motivations for serving, all of the men had one thing in common the protection of Baltimore from destruction. With the construction of the conservation lab completed in 1999, conservators began their work. He (Key) said 'You can't shell that fort.' No, that's not true: The video posted and shared many times on social platforms is filled with major historical inaccuracies and is about as fictional as a "Game of Thrones" episode. Mary Young Pickersgill Bodies of the dead were not used to hold up the flag pole a 42 by 30 foot flag has to be on a well-anchored pole, not held up by a few dead bodies stacked around it. That same year, Preble had the first known photograph of it taken at the Boston Navy Yard and exhibited it at the New England Historic Genealogical Society, where he stored it until 1876. The Surgernor post includes the message "Here is a video I produced several years ago that tells the true story of our National Anthem. Sign up for our quarterly email series highlighting the environmental benefits of battlefield preservation. The American Battlefield Trust is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. The Star-Spangled Banner is one of the most recognizable icons of the United States. The bombardment, known as the Battle of Baltimore, came only weeks after the British had attacked Washington, D.C., burning the Capitol, the Treasury and the President's house. After the battle, the flag came into the possession of Major Armistead. Advertising Notice It is a made-up quote, according to scholars at Washington's presidential library. [29][30], Georgiana Appleton died in 1878 and left the flag to her son, Eben Appleton. All that he (Key) could hear was the men down below praying. The failed bombardment of Fort McHenry forced the British to abandon their land assault on the crucial port city of Baltimore. Stay up-to-date on our FREE educational resources & professional development opportunities, all designed to support your work teaching American history. Keeping their stars on the national flag signified that continued solidarity. Print by J. Bower, Philadelphia, 1816. This is a longer version of the same story posted in 2008. ", 2400 East Fort Avenue Is the "Our National Anthem" video produced by Robert Surgernor the true story of "The Star Spangled Banner"? United States victory. Knowing that his fort was a likely British target, Armistead told the commander of Baltimore defenses in July 1813 that he needed a flaga big one. Two days later, having reembarked the land forces, the fleet sailed down the Chesapeake, soon to receive new Admiralty orders to attack the port of New Orleans, an engagement that took place before word could arrive that peace had been secured through a conference in Ghent, Belgium. The final poem, called The Defense of Fort MHenry, was printed and later set to the tune of a popular song. He wanted to be sure the British could see the United States colors from their distant warships. The American Battlefield Trust and our members have saved more than 56,000 acres in 25 states! "STAR-SPANGLED BANNER" "The Star-Spangled Banner," the national anthem of the United States, was inspired by the flag that flew over Fort McHenry in the harbor of Baltimore, Maryland, during the War of 1812 (1812-1815). It is baffling why anyone would fabricate historical facts that would then be assumed to be authentic. Eben immediately wrote to the Secretary of the Smithsonian,Charles D. Walcott. The striking visual has pervaded our national imagination: The first rays of a new day reveal the symbol of a nation young but strong standing defiant in the face of our foes. The British set sail for New Orleans. He will come out and negotiate to see if we can make a mutual exchange.'. Their vessel had been held in security by Cochranes flagship HMS Surprise out of range of the American guns. He said 'It's full of women and children.' "We're aware of at least a dozen more that exist in other museums and private collections," says Kendrick. To the best of our knowledge, the British did not specifically target the flag. In fact, the number of stars on the flag actually grew during the war from 34 to 36. 15-star flag above Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine, Baltimore, Md. This included scientific studies with infrared spectrometry, electron microscopy, mechanical testing, and determination of amino acid content by a New Zealand scientist, and infrared imaging by a NASA scientist. War & Affiliation War of 1812 / American. [52], A 2-inch by 5-inch fragment of the flagwhite and red, with a seam down the middlewas sold at auction in Dallas, Texas on November 30, 2011, for $38,837: the snippet was, presumably, cut from the famous flag as a souvenir in the mid-19th century. Is Northern capitalized? This delay gives the American defenders in Baltimore time to bolster their defenses. When the flag arrived at the Smithsonian it was smaller (30 by 34 feet), damaged from years of use at the fort and from pieces being removed as souvenirs. The hissing rockets and the fiery shells glittered in the air, threatening destruction as they fell,later recalled a young British sailor, in a description that sounds straight out of a poem, Whilst to add solemnity to this scene of devastation, the rain fell in torrents the thunder broke inmighty peals after each successive flash of lightening, that for a moment illuminated the surrounding darkness.But with no coordinated infantry assaults, Cochrane began to draw down his thrust. And it's never leaving. A week earlier, Francis Scott Key, a 35-year-old American lawyer, had boarded the flagship of the British fleet on the Chesapeake Bay in hopes of persuading the British to release a friend who had recently been arrested. (Image:93-13286-2 and SIA2008-2449.). Terms of Use He said 'Hundreds." He said 'Don't they understand this is an impossible situation?' Our Flag Was Still There | History| Smithsonian Magazine According to the Smithsonian Archives, this October 1944 photograph shows: "The headquarters area of the United States National Museum storage facilityin Luray, Virginia, near Shenandoah National Park." For the next 27 hours, in driving rain, the warships hammer the fort. Key took quarters for the night at the Indian Queen Hotel, bringing with him the rough draft of a poem he had composed during his ordeal. This flag flew from 1861 to 1863. Our FREE Virtual Teacher Institute is the can't miss online educator event of the summer. After the Battle of Baltimore. After coming to the Smithsonian, the Star-Spangled Banner has only left the National Mall once. The British attack on Baltimore had began in earnest. Fort McHenry was a military post, not a shelter for women and children. Says Glass, "The survival of this flag for nearly 200 years is a visible testimony to the strength and perseverance of this nation, and we hope that it will inspire many more generations to come.". At 30 by 42. But by 9:30 a.m., Admiral Cochrane knew his fleet would be mired for the foreseeable future those shore batteries, coupled with a chain-mast boom, sunken vessels, U.S. gun boats and the Lazaretto Battery, presented a formidable harbor defensive line and any infantry assault would lack naval support. How it ended United States victory. was its question.. As twilight began to fall and as the haze hung over the ocean as it does at sunset, suddenly, the British war fleet unleashed. This was not updated until April 4, 1818, so Pickersgill sewed on 15 stars. Are the words national anthem capitalized in a sentence? Recognizing its need for repair, the Smithsonian hired Amelia Fowler, an embroidery teacher and well-known flag preserver, in 1914 to replace the canvas backing that had been added in 1873. Victoria "Tory" Altman is an Education Specialist in the Office of Education Outreach. "The Star-Spangled Banner is a symbol of American history that ranks with the Statue of Liberty and the Charters of Freedom," says Brent D. Glass, the museum's director. The stars are arranged in vertical rows, with five horizontal rows of stars, offset, each containing three stars. "I gave the flag to the National Museum with the firm and settled intention of having it remain there forever," he wrote, "and regarded the acceptance of the gift by the Authorities of the Museum as evidence of their willingness to comply with this condition", Eben asked Walcott to ensure that any "citizen who visits the museum with the expectation of seeing the flag be sure of finding it in its accustomed place.". Historians are not sure how the Armistead family came into possession of the flag, but upon Armistead's death in 1818, his wife Louisa inherited it. During that conflict, the British conducted frequent raids on American towns and harbors along the Atlantic coast, including forays into Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore privateers were responsible for as much as one-third of all captured British vessels during the war. The Star-Spangled Banner remained in Flag Hall from 1964 until 1999, when it was moved to the conservation lab. Museums often lend objects and artifacts to each other in order to tell more complete stories. [53] The framed remnant came with a faded, hand-written note attesting it was "A piece of the Flag which floated over Fort McHenry at the time of the bombardment when Key's (sic) composed the Song of the Star Spangled Banner, presented by Sam Beth Cohen. Which US states still fly the Confederate flag? - Diario AS It was this storm flagnot the garrison flag now known as the Star-Spangled Bannerwhich actually flew during the battle. But a missing 15th star has never been found. [31], Eben Appleton was highly protective of the flag and disliked the attention it brought him. The First American President: Setting the Precedent, African Americans During the Revolutionary War, Help Save 820 Acres at Five Virginia Battlefields, Save 343 Acres at FIVE Battlefields in FOUR Western Theater States, Save 42 Historic Acres at the Battle of Chancellorsville, Phase Three of Gaines Mill-Cold Harbor Saved Forever Campaign, An Unparalleled Preservation Opportunity at Gettysburg Battlefield. F or as famous as it is, the so-called Star-Spangled Banner is shrouded in plenty of misconceptions. In 1931 the song became the national anthem of the United States. [49][50][51], The National Museum of American History produced an online exhibition in conjunction with the reopening of Flag Hall in 2008. West Virginia and Nevada joined the Union in 1863 and 1864 respectively. He said 'That's, that's a large fort.' Close-up of Fort McHenry's preserved "Great Garrison Flag" shows the incredible detail and stitching. Bodies of the dead were not used to hold up the flag pole a 42 by 30 foot flag has to be on a well-anchored pole, not held up by a few dead bodies stacked around it. In the first phase, the team removed the linen support backing that was attached to the flag during the 1914 restoration. To the best of our knowledge, the British did not specifically target the flag. There is conflicting evidence as to which flag, the larger garrison flag or the smaller storm flag, flew over the fort during the battle. The exploding shells and rocket fire from British warships inspired Francis Scott Key to pen the lyrics to the Star-Spangled Banner.Seeing no way to penetrate American defenses, the British withdrew their troops and gave up their Chesapeake Campaign. Using a storm flag in those conditions would have been standard practice. The flag and many other treasures were crated up and sent to Luray, Virginia, for safekeeping. From Baltimore's Federal Hill the fleet of more than 40 British vessels was visible at anchor off North Point. Sign up for our quarterly email series highlighting the environmental benefits of battlefield preservation. inaccurate stories, videos or images going viral on the internet. In the twilight hours of Friday, September 16, the President was released and docked alongside Hughes Wharf at Fells Point. [19], Louisa occasionally allowed the flag to be used for civic occasions. Is Fort McHenry open Covid? They said 'We want to send a man out to discuss this with you.' But the Star-Spangled Banner is more than an artifactit's also a national symbol. The video opened: (Written text on screen) We guarantee that you will NEVER feel the same way again when you sing this song at a sporting event after you hear this story! The larger of the two flags had stripes two feet wide, and stars 24 inches from point to point. The Battle of Fort Henry, Tennessee occurred as part of a Union plan to open a water route into the Confederate heartland by capturing Forts Henry and Donelson. From the harbor below Fort McHenry, these events were witnessed without understanding that they were standard practice by those aboard a Baltimore packet vessel, President, now serving as the U.S. flag-of-truce vessel. The garrison flag is raised every morning at reveille, but on this daySeptember 14, 1814its presence has special significance. The garrison flag, according to eyewitness accounts, wasn't raised until the morning. Learn more about Mailchimp's privacy practices here. Among the preparations were upgrades of Fort McHenry, a 32-pound cannon battery along the waters edge, fortifications at Lazaretto Point, and additional batteries arrayed along the banks of the Patapsco. [42], A conservation effort was undertaken in 1982 to protect the flag from damage due to dust and light. When California Became Its Own Nation - History Over the next six weeks, Mary, her daughter, three of Mary's nieces, a 13-year-old indentured servant and possibly Mary's mother Rebecca Young worked 10-hour days sewing the flag, using 300 yards of English wool bunting.
Mars In 8th House Marriage Partners, Roberto's Chicken Burrito Calories, Andre Dickens Campaign Manager, Articles D