He wrote yet he did not write it as a song but as a poem the year 1814. The original poem was written after the rainy night when the British gunboats attempted to slip past the fort after an artillery attack which is what the phrase the rockets’ red glare, the bombs bursting in air probably meant.

The day after the attack Key (the patriot) wrote the poem because of the inspiration of the American victory and the gleaming sight of the 15 starred and 15 striped American flag called the star spangled banner.

The star spangled banner was named national anthem March 3,1931 by a law signed by president Herbert Hoover.