Star-Spangled Confederates: How Southern Sympathizers Decided Our National Anthem

Dang it, it was not an epic battle between peaceniks, the NAACP and a bunch of wimpy Yankee intellectuals vanquised by red blooded Confederates that got us our National Anthem, but a cartoon.

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Becoming the National Anthem
"The Star Spangled Banner" was published in a number of newspapers at the time, but by the Civil War it had become one of the most popular patriotic songs of the United States.
By the late 19th century, "The Star Spangled Banner" had become the official song of the U.S. military, but it wasn't until 1931 that the United States officially made "The Star Spangled Banner" the official national anthem of the country.

Believe It or Not

Interestingly, it was Robert L. Ripley of "Ripley's Believe It or Not!" that spurred the interest of the American people to demand "The Star Spangled Banner" to become the official national anthem. On November 3, 1929, Ripley ran a panel in his syndicated cartoon stating that "Believe It or Not, America has no national anthem." Americans were shocked and wrote five million letters to Congress demanding Congress proclaim a national anthem.

Additional Civil War period lyrics

In indignation over the start of the American Civil War, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.[13] added a fifth stanza to the song in 1861 which appeared in songbooks of the era.[14]
When our land is illumined with liberty's smile,​
If a foe from within strikes a blow at her glory,​
Down, down with the traitor that tries to defile​
The flag of the stars, and the page of her story!​
By the millions unchained,​
Who their birthright have gained​
We will keep her bright blazon forever unstained;​
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave,​
While the land of the free is the home of the brave.​


At least the Confederates got that dropped.


After circulating as a handbill, the patriotic lyrics were published in a Baltimore newspaper on September 20, 1814. Key's words were later set to the tune of "To Anacreon in Heaven," a popular English song. Throughout the 19th century, "The Star-Spangled Banner" was regarded as the national anthem by most branches of the U.S. armed forces and other groups, but it was not until 1916, and the signing of an executive order by President Woodrow Wilson, that it was formally designated as such.
 
I love this section from the article:

"The unspoken racial agenda of the “Banner” supporters was displayed on June 14, 1931, when the National Society of the Daughters of 1812 and the state of Maryland, sponsored a ceremony at War Memorial Plaza in Baltimore to celebrate the new national anthem. The parade was led by a column of Boy Scouts carrying three flags: the Stars and Stripes, the red and gold flag of Maryland, and the Stars and Bars of the army of the Confederate States of America.
Veterans of the Grand Army of the Republic pulled out at the sight of the banner of their former enemies. "GAR Balks at Southern Flag in Parade," reported The Baltimore Sun. Gen. John F. King, past national commander of the GAR, "ordered the Union men to disband and fall out line," said the Baltimore Afro-American.
Etta Holloway, the leader of the pro-“Banner” forces for more than two decades, defended the flying of the Confederate flag as patriotic."
I've done enough research in GAR posts to know that there was a LOT (emphasis added) of opposition to the 1913 and 1938 Gettysburg re-unions. Enough so that the national GAR had to make it an individual choice rather than "official."
Sometimes I wonder just how staged those "reconciliation" meetings at the stone wall with everyone shaking hands were. Didn't anybody try to punch somebody out? I have heard of WW 2 German Army reunions with some U.S. Vet participants, but mostly German, very few U.S.
 
I love this section from the article:

"The unspoken racial agenda of the “Banner” supporters was displayed on June 14, 1931, when the National Society of the Daughters of 1812 and the state of Maryland, sponsored a ceremony at War Memorial Plaza in Baltimore to celebrate the new national anthem. The parade was led by a column of Boy Scouts carrying three flags: the Stars and Stripes, the red and gold flag of Maryland, and the Stars and Bars of the army of the Confederate States of America.
Veterans of the Grand Army of the Republic pulled out at the sight of the banner of their former enemies. "GAR Balks at Southern Flag in Parade," reported The Baltimore Sun. Gen. John F. King, past national commander of the GAR, "ordered the Union men to disband and fall out line," said the Baltimore Afro-American.
Etta Holloway, the leader of the pro-“Banner” forces for more than two decades, defended the flying of the Confederate flag as patriotic."
I've done enough research in GAR posts to know that there was a LOT (emphasis added) of opposition to the 1913 and 1938 Gettysburg re-unions. Enough so that the national GAR had to make it an individual choice rather than "official."
Sometimes I wonder just how staged those "reconciliation" meetings at the stone wall with everyone shaking hands were. Didn't anybody try to punch somebody out? I have heard of WW 2 German Army reunions with some U.S. Vet participants, but mostly German, very few U.S.

This is the Stars and Bars
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This is the flag of Army of Northern VA and adapted by most CSA armies.
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Which one are they speaking of?

If you noticed there was an army officer present at the hand shaking at the stone wall to insure no punching.
 
The First time the anthem was used as an Army post was during the Indian Wars at Ft Meade, SD. According to the Army that is the home of the National Anthem. Irony or irnoies it was a USCT post at the time.
 
I'd much prefer America the Beautiful or God Bless America. Has nothing to do with politics, the Civil War, or Great Britain. They're just prettier songs, easier to sing and I think more meaningful to most citizens.
 
The "Star Spangled Banner" is one of those tunes that sounds fantastic when played by a military band but sounds terrible when sung, regardless who does the singing.

Performances
In an attempt to take Baltimore, the British attacked Fort McHenry, which protected the harbor. Bombs were soon bursting in air, rockets were glaring, and all in all it was a moment of great historical interest. During the bombardment, a young lawyer named Francis Off Key [sic] wrote "The Star-Spangled Banner", and when, by the dawn's early light, the British heard it sung, they fled in terror.
—Richard Armour​

The Isaac Asimov short story "No Refuge Could Save" takes its title from a line in the third stanza. In the story, the protagonist notes that he once ferreted out a German spy during World War II because of the spy's knowledge of the third verse, which is virtually unknown by Americans.
Professional and amateur singers have been known to forget the words, which is one reason the song is sometimes pre-recorded and lip-synced. Other times the issue is avoided by having the performer(s) play the anthem instrumentally instead of singing it. Such situations have been lampooned in film (see below). The pre-recording of the anthem has become standard practice at some ballparks, such as Boston's Fenway Park, according to the SABR publication The Fenway Project.[16] For instance, pop singer Christina Aguilera performed the wrong lyrics to the song prior to Super Bowl XLV, replacing the song's fourth line, "o'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming", with an alteration of the second line, "what so proudly we watched at the twilight's last gleaming".[17]
10 Worst National Anthem Performances Ever

Maybe the Southern Sympathizers that Decided Our National Anthem did not have the best of motives in mind.
 
The "Star Spangled Banner" is one of those tunes that sounds fantastic when played by a military band but sounds terrible when sung, regardless who does the singing.
Tend to disagree, if only because bad singers like Roseanne Barr ruined it, but good ones like the late Whitney Houston could bring something to it that it had lacked before. Don't know if Whitney ever sang it at a ball game, but I'd be surprised to learn that she didn't. I'm trying to think of one particular example of recent years where someone like her "knocked it out of the park."
 
Tend to disagree, if only because bad singers like Roseanne Barr ruined it, but good ones like the late Whitney Houston could bring something to it that it had lacked before. Don't know if Whitney ever sang it at a ball game, but I'd be surprised to learn that she didn't. I'm trying to think of one particular example of recent years where someone like her "knocked it out of the park."


Whitney Houston sings the National Anthem
 
Incredible. The last few lines gave me goosebumps. One question: who was flying the Army of Northern Virginia Traitors Flag? Or is that one of those darn state flags?
 
Incredible. The last few lines gave me goosebumps. One question: who was flying the Army of Northern Virginia Traitors Flag? Or is that one of those darn state flags?

I'd be a bit more careful of your language, sir. You are undoubtedly referring to the Confederate Battle Flag, carried by a lot more CSA armies than the Army of Northern Virgina.

You may have had a glimpse of the Mississippi State flag

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I somehow always liked the notion that our national anthem started out as a barroom drinking song. Seems awfully appropriate for us.

Here's one of my favorites, and not just because these guys are my friends, but because it's good. From the National League baseball playoffs last year in San Francisco:


BTW, there is an interesting phenomenon about the Kingston Trio singing the national anthem at baseball playoffs. The last few times they've sung it at playoff games, the hometeam NEVER LOSES AGAIN in the playoffs.
 
The "Star Spangled Banner" is one of those tunes that sounds fantastic when played by a military band but sounds terrible when sung, regardless who does the singing.

It's obvious you didn't watch last evening's PBS July 4th Capitol Fourth Special - the Anthem was admirably rendered by my favorite "Classical Crossover" singer, Jackie Evancho, seen below during the fitting of the dress she wore for the occasion:

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