What is the name of the United States national anthem, based on an 1814 poem by Francis Scott Key?

The United States national anthem based on Francis Scott Key’s 1814 poem is “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

Key wrote the poem after witnessing the American defense of Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor during the War of 1812. He saw the large American flag still flying over the fort after a night bombardment by British forces on September 13–14, 1814.

The poem was published as “The Defence of Fort M'Henry” and was set to the melody of a popular English song called “Anacreon in Heaven.” The song became increasingly popular during the nineteenth century, but Congress did not make it the official national anthem until March 3, 1931.

The flag that inspired Key is known as the Star-Spangled Banner and is preserved by the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. The anthem’s history connects the Revolutionary founding era to a later conflict that tested the young republic’s survival.