Francis Scott Key

On August 1, 1779, in Frederick County, Maryland, Francis Scott Key was born into a prominent family with ties to law, land, and public office. He studied at St. John's College in Annapolis, read law under his uncle Philip Barton Key, and established a legal practice in Georgetown. That training placed him inside the political and professional networks of the new federal capital.

During the War of 1812, Key sailed under a flag of truce to negotiate the release of Dr. William Beanes and found himself watching the British bombardment of Fort McHenry in September 1814. The poem he drafted afterward, first titled "Defence of Fort M'Henry," quickly circulated in print and song. Key later served as United States attorney for the District of Columbia, where he remained active in legal and public affairs during the Monroe and Jackson years.

Key's poem became "The Star-Spangled Banner," and Congress made it the national anthem in 1931. The Fort McHenry episode also helped fix the War of 1812 in American civic memory through ritual, music, and patriotic commemoration.