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Francis Scott Key and "The Star-Spangled Banner"

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Francis Scott Key and "The Star-Spangled Banner"
Reading Level

	edHelper's suggested reading level:	grades 6 to 8
	Flesch-Kincaid grade level:	5.8

Vocabulary

	challenging words:		Beanes, unorganized, conscription, helping, impressment, destruction, defeat, commander, historic, fuses, persuade, valuable, prisoner, immediately, victory, government
	content words:		Revolutionary War, United States, When Britain, American Indians, On June, Great Britain, White House, President James Madison, George Washington, Fort McHenry

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Francis Scott Key and "The Star-Spangled Banner" By Jane Runyon

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¹     The British did not take their defeat in the Revolutionary War too well. They would not believe that they could be beaten by a group of unorganized colonists. The British government believed that if it gave the colonists a few years, the American government would fail and the United States would be begging the British to come back and take over. When Britain went to war with France in 1793, it needed more men to fight on its ships. Britain also needed to control shipping routes across the Atlantic. British ships stole American sailors to fight in the British navy against France. This was called conscription or impressment. Britain also tried to restrict trade between the United States and other countries in Europe. Americans were also upset with the British for helping American Indians defend their land against American encroachment. On June 18, 1812, America declared war on Great Britain.
 
²     In August 1814, the British boldly entered the capital of the United States, Washington, D.C., and took it over. By this time, the war with France was over. The Canadians had held off the weak American effort to take them over. More soldiers were available to be sent on the attack. The British set fire to the White House, which was the home of President James Madison. Luckily, he was away at the time, and his wife, Dolley, was able to save many valuable belongings. One of these belongings was a portrait of George Washington. The British also set fire to the Capitol building. A rain storm was the act of nature that saved those structures from total destruction.
 
³     The British set their sights on taking Baltimore, Maryland, when they left Washington, D.C. They were angry with the citizens of Baltimore for allowing private ship owners to capture British trading ships. They were much like pirates stealing British treasures. When the British reached Baltimore some forty miles from Washington, they found that the citizens had sunk ships in the harbor, keeping them from getting too close to the city. They were stopped near Fort McHenry and decided to make that their target instead.

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A New Nation
(1776-1830)

A New Nation (1776-1830)

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Flag Day

Flag Day

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United States

United States

American Government         Black History and Blacks in U.S. History         Children in History         Government Careers         Hispanic Heritage         How Can I Help?

Immigration         National Parks and Monuments         Native Americans         Presidents of the United States         Women's History

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United States History

A Nation Divided (1840-1861)         A New Nation (1776-1830)         After the Civil War (1865-1870)         American Revolution         Cold War (1947-1991)         Colonial America (1492-1776)         Lewis and Clark (1804-1806)         Pearl Harbor         Spanish American War (1898)         The 1890's         The 1900's         The 1910's         The 1920's         The 1930's

The 1940's         The 1950's         The 1960's         The 1970's         The 1980's         The 1990's         The 2000's         The Civil War (1861-1865)         The Great Depression (1929-1945)         The United States Grows (1865-1900)         The War of 1812         Wild, Wild West         World War I (1914-1918)         World War II

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50 States

Fifty States Theme Unit

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