As Key watched the British open fire on Fort McHenry, the massive fort which guarded the harbor, he caught a (i) ________ of the American flag flying in the breeze as cannon volleys caused flashes of gunfire and rising smoke all around the nation’s symbol. As the sun slid behind the edge of the earth and darkness fell, Key watched, waited, and worried as the bombardment continued. He was unable to leam – or even guess – what was transpiring in front of his eyes because he could only see the flashes sent forth by the cannons and gunfire as they targeted the huge fort (ii) ________ that very dark night. In the early morning hours, as Key peered out over the horizon toward the fort’s ramparts to try to determine what had happened during that long night, he saw the glorious sight of the American flag still flying in the breeze. The battle was over. Fort McHenry had withstood the attack. And the flag was still there. The British naval officers permitted Key and the other Americans (iii) ________ to shore, and as he did Key began scribbling furiously on a (iv) ________ of paper the words he believed described the bombardment of Fort McHenry and the thrill he felt after the battle when he saw the American flag still waving in the breeze. Key wrote about the events in verse and within a short time, the Words were put to music. Unofficially, the song became the national Anthem and in 1931, more than a hundred years after the battle at Ft.McHrnry in 1814, the United States Congress passed a law which formally (v) ________ the song as the national anthem.
(iii)____
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