As the early light of dawn crept through the darkness, haze, and smoke, three men in a small boat tensely waited. They were torn between a fearful apprehension and hopeful expectancy. Daylight would show what lay ahead for their city and nation.

It had been almost twenty-five hours earlier when, finding themselves detained among the enemy ships, they watched the enemy launch a combined army-navy attack on one of their nation’s most important cities. Their country had already experienced many defeats, and their capital city had been burned. When the three men, then, found themselves observing the awesome attack launched against their fellow countrymen, their concern was great. The fighting was intense; the bombs from the enemy ships readily found their mark in the attacked fort. The noise of the rockets, bombs, and cannon-fire had been almost constant throughout the day and continued into the night.

An Eerie Quiet
Then in the early morning hours, there was silence. Only occasional firing broke the stillness. The battle seemed over, but what was the outcome? The three men in the boat watched eagerly to see if their flag was still flying over the fort and the city.

It was during those hours of intense watching and waiting that the words of a song began to take shape in the poetic mind of Francis Scott Key, one of the men in the boat. How did Key come to find himself watching the fate of his country from such a vantage point? What kind of a man was he to write a song that has ever since touched and thrilled his countrymen?

Francis Scott Key was born on August 1, 1779, while the young United States was waging the war that would establish its independence. His father, John Ross Key, fought in the American Revolution and generously armed and equipped a regiment at his own expense. The Keys were wealthy landowners from Frederick, Maryland; and Francis Scott early developed a love for the land and home of Terra Rubra, his father’s estate.

Among the strong influences on Key’s character in his early years was his grandmother, Ann Arnold Ross Key. She had lost her eyesight by fire when she was rescuing two servants from the flames of her father’s burning house, but she bore her terrible affliction with Christian fortitude. The sensitive Francis Scott was deeply impressed by her strong faith. Francis stayed with his grandmother while he attended school in Annapolis. After graduating from St. John’s College at the age of seventeen, Francis went on to study law.

In 1802 Key married the beautiful Mary Taylor Lloyd in the elegant drawing room of the Lloyd mansion in Annapolis. The Keys had eleven children, six boys and five girls, and their family life together was a happy one. Soon after his marriage, Key began to practice law in Washington, D.C. Even in the busiest of times, Key never failed to conduct family prayers in his home twice a day, always including the servants in these family devotions.

The shady lawn and orchard of the Key mansion sloped to the edge of the Potomac River, providing a lovely setting for the frolics and gambols of the Key children. Francis Scott delighted in sharing the nature of the area with his children and often planned special surprises for them in the gardens. Once he instructed the gardener to make a tiny round garden for each child. When the seeds sprouted, they took the shape of the children’s names -- Marie, Lizzie, Anna, etc.

Key's Christian convictions were intense and influenced all his relations and actions. At one time, in 1814, he even considered entering the ministry. Though he decided to remain in his law career, his Christian beliefs continued strong and his Christian work active throughout his life. Among those whose faith Key’s help sustained was John Randolph of Roanoke. Randolph had had his faith shaken by reading Voltaire and other Enlightenment authors. In a letter to Randolph, Key wrote his own views, which still contain excellent apologetic advice for today: