Luxist

Francis Scott Key's famous patriotic verses were inspired by a shipboard vigil on the night of
September 13-14, 1814, when a British naval flotilla bombarded Fort McHenry for hours,
prefatory to a planned full-scale assault. Key, a young lawyer, and a colleague had gone on
board a British ship under a flag of truce to secure the release of an American physician, Dr. William Beanes, held as a prisoner. To ensure that no military information on the impending
attack could be passed to the American defenders, Key too was detained. He spent the night on the deck of the flag-of-truce sloop, which gave him a sweeping view of the dramatic
scene. He watched anxiously as British naval cannon-fire and incendiary bombs and rockets
rained onto the American fort. During the shelling, the very large stars and stripes flag flying from the fort's ramparts was clearly visible, giving heartening evidence that the fort's defenses had weathered the storm of shot and shell. But when the bombardment unexpectedly ceased, the American flag was obscured. Key was heart-sick. Had the fort been
forced to surrender? But at dawn, when the smoke of the shelling lifted, the flag was again
visible. Key's patriotic emotions were powerfully stirred by the welcome sight. His first draft
of the anthem was written on shipboard, on the back of a letter, then a final version,
containing four 8-line stanzas, was completed in the next few days upon Key's return to
Baltimore. Pre-sale estimate: $200,000 to $300,000. SOLD FOR $506,500 (including the buyer's premium) SETTING A NEW WORLD RECORD FOR SHEET MUSIC SOLD AT AUCTION.