How many stars and stripes did the Star-Spangled Banner flag have when it flew over Fort McHenry in 1814?

The Star-Spangled Banner flag had 15 stars and 15 stripes when it flew over Fort McHenry in 1814.

The flag was the large garrison flag displayed during the Battle of Baltimore in the War of 1812. Its fifteen stars and fifteen stripes represented the fifteen states then in the Union, including Vermont and Kentucky, which had joined after the original thirteen states.

Francis Scott Key saw the flag after the British bombardment and was inspired to write the poem “Defence of Fort M'Henry.” The poem later became the lyrics of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” adopted as the United States national anthem in 1931. Congress eventually returned the flag design to thirteen stripes while continuing to add stars for new states.