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Who Knew?

Did you know the U.S. National Anthem has a 2nd Verse?

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Chuz Life

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I was a boyscout, I have considered myself 'patriotic' since and early age.

I served four years in the United States Marine Corps. (1981-1985)

I did fairly well in civics, social studies and other government classes.

Today, I was made aware for the first time,... that our National Anthem has a 2nd verse.

Check it out.


Oh, thus be it ever when free men shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war's desolation!
Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the heav'n rescued land
Praise the Pow'r that hath made and preserved us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto, "In God is our trust"
And the Star-Spangled Banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!
 
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That is actually the 4th verse if I remember correctly.
 

Optional 5th verse

 
Knew there was more than one. Was thinking 3 or 4. (But on any given day would have trouble remembering all the words to the first.....)


.
 
Cole said:
Knew there was more than one. Was thinking 3 or 4. (But on any given day would have trouble remembering all the words to the first.....)


.
Click to expand...

Could'a would'a should'a googled it, I guess.

Pretty odd that I lived this long without hearing any of them though.

Especially in a large family full of trivia nuts.

 
Yeah, I knew that.

It's technically not an additional verse however, as the song is made of the first verse of a poem. The song itself consists of only one of the verses, much as if someone made a song about one of Poe's plays and only included the first few lines. While there may be additional verses to the poem, that doesn't always mean there's an additional verse to the song that they were made into.

It's music however, and anyone can do anything they want and call it a song or a verse.

I imagine I'm mincing words here.
 
I know there are multiple verses, but I can only sing the first verse by heart. It's a shame it's the only verse that we hear on a semi-regular basis.
 
America the Beautiful should be our national anthem, but there are far more pressing needs; a change here should be at the bottom of the list.
 
I knew there was more than one verse, but I have never *heard* them and wouldn't have recognized the words.
 
Korimyr the Rat said:
I know there are multiple verses, but I can only sing the first verse by heart. It's a shame it's the only verse that we hear on a semi-regular basis.
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This should be debated in our schools, with civility and respect.
And, no, I did not know. I do know that Francis Scott Key wrote this on the back of an envelope while on a British ship, as, I believe, a POW. The music is based on an old English "drinking" song.
 
I knew there were more verses, but could never remember the words.

Maybe I'm just an emotional sap, but when the people behind him (you know, those "dangerous teabaggers") started standing one by one, I started to cry.
 
rof That's actually a stanza. :2razz:

Also, the optional fifth stanza was added by Oliver Wendall Holmes 17 years or so after Key died.

 
StandUpChuck said:
I knew there were more verses, but could never remember the words.

Maybe I'm just an emotional sap, but when the people behind him (you know, those "dangerous teabaggers") started standing one by one, I started to cry.
Click to expand...


Glad to know I'm not the only one..... (of course, I cry at cotton commercials, so there ya go)
 
StandUpChuck said:
I knew there were more verses, but could never remember the words.

Maybe I'm just an emotional sap, but when the people behind him (you know, those "dangerous teabaggers") started standing one by one, I started to cry.
Click to expand...

Try living next door to a cemetery....when a veteran is interred, there is usually a bag pipe playing for some time before the casket actually arrives on scene, sort of a grave dedlication. Danny Boy and Amazing Grace are common at such dedicatory services....
 
earthworm said:
America the Beautiful should be our national anthem, but there are far more pressing needs; a change here should be at the bottom of the list.
Click to expand...

The Star-Spangled Banner is a much more meaningful and historical song about the trials we faced in becoming a nation.
 
They took Francis Scott Key's poem and combined it with an existing melody, from a BRITISH song. Who knew that?
 
mpg said:
They took Francis Scott Key's poem and combined it with an existing melody, from a BRITISH song. Who knew that?
Click to expand...

Nearly every single American citizen, I would hope...my education was good, but then so was everyones in Chatham..in the 50s...but today....I do not know.
 
I never knew, nor did I give it much thought, although most songs have more than one verse. I find the first verse difficult enough to recall, and the tune is not the best, although I can get a little teary eyed when I sing it.
 
There are 4 stanza's written by Francis Scott Key in 1814
There is a 5th Stanza written by George Spowers in 1824
And a 6th Stanza written by Oliver-Wendell Holmes during the Civil War.

http://www.mikeodd.net/encyc/anthtext.htm
If you wish to view the words to all the Stanza's and why they wrote the words.
 

I was not aware of the Spowers stanza. Thanks for the info.
 
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