<\/p>\n
In Part I<\/a> we discussed how years of oppression by the British Empire \u2014 the impressment of American sailors, the seizure of American ships, the blockades of American ports \u2014 drove the young United States to declare war against the mightiest empire in the world.<\/i><\/p>\n In Part II<\/a> we examined how Baltimore, specifically the shipyards producing the Baltimore Clipper style of privateer, came to be a prime target of the British, and why their failure to wipe out that \u201cnest of pirates\u201d was something worthy of celebration.<\/i><\/p>\n Now in Part III we\u2019ll look at what sort of man Key was, and what he might have meant by the lines \u201cNo refuge could save the hireling and slave \/ From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave\u201d.<\/i><\/p>\n As a Federalist, Francis Scott Key had been opposed to the war, but of course once it was joined he hoped for an American victory.[Taylor]<\/sup> He even served as a militia officer at the Battle of Bladensburg, the prelude to the British sack of D.C. Like most of the militia in that engagement, he took flight at the British approach; it may have been in an attempt at redemption that he volunteered to go into the lion\u2019s den to negotiate the release of William Beanes.[Morley, 52-54]<\/sup><\/p>\n He was, in the opinion of biographer Marc Leepson, \u201ca really bad amateur poet\u2026with one brilliant exception.\u201d[McCauley]<\/sup><\/p>\n And regarding that first verse, the one we all know, I agree. It\u2019s worth noting that federal law (36 U.S. Code \u00a7 301<\/a>) says that \u201cThe composition consisting of the words and music known as the Star-Spangled Banner is the national anthem\u201d but does not actually specify what composition is known by that name \u2014 it seems to me that a sound argument could be made that this refers solely to that first verse. Key titled his poem \u201cDefence of Fort McHenry\u201d, and so there is some ambiguity there. When that law was adopted, just what composition was generally known as \u201cThe Star-Spangled Banner\u201d? A infinite argument for mages.<\/p>\n But let us turn now to the stanza of Key\u2019s poem that has caused such consternation of late:<\/p>\n And where is that band who so vauntingly swore Much has been made of that reference to \u201cthe hireling and slave\u201d. It has been pointed out that there were actually a few companies of escaped slaves, the \u201cColonial Marines\u201d, fighting for the British.[Weiss]<\/sup> In a sense these men have been recently re-discovered, and their story deserves to be more widely told.<\/p>\n More than 4,000 enslaved people fled to the British and were freed;[\u201cBlack Sailors\u201d]<\/sup> most had a hard future as poorly-treated refugees in Bermuda or Canada,[Weiss, Spray]<\/sup> but still were glad to be quit of their \u201cmasters\u201d.[Oakes]<\/sup><\/p>\n But for a few months, the British organized some of the escaped men into fighting companies. (A controversial move, given that Britain was still a slave-holding nation.)[Weiss]<\/sup> Knowing of the existence of these soldiers, at first glance it may seem that Key, a slaveholder[Leepson, 25]<\/sup>, was referring to these ex-slave solders and glorifying their deaths.<\/p>\n But we are at the intersection of poetry and history here, and we ought to look carefully before closing the case.<\/p>\n First let\u2019s consider the use of the word \u201cslave\u201d. Must it be literal, or could it be a general term of insult? Just as Baltimore had no actual \u201cpirates\u201d, despite the British insulting privateers as such.<\/p>\n As previously mentioned, \u201cslave\u201d was used this way in Elijah Parish\u2019s widely-circulated \u201cBabylon\u201d sermon of 1811 to describe nations allied with France[Parish]<\/sup>. And it was used thus in several poems published in London in 1801, one praising the British soldier in comparison to those of \u201cdespots\u201d:<\/p>\n To battle let despots compel the poor slave and one insulting France as \u201ca natural slave\u201d:<\/p>\n What statesmen scheme and soldiers work and another urging Britons to be courageous in the struggle with France:<\/p>\n Who will be a traitor knave It certainly seems possible that Key\u2019s use of \u201cslave\u201d could be intended to insult British soldiers just as these poets used it to insult Britain\u2019s enemies.<\/p>\n While Key was a slave-owner, he seems to have believed that slaves were due some humane treatment. (This is not to in any way justify slavery; it is to inquire whether he was, at the time, the sort of person who would rejoice at the death of slaves.) He actually spoke against the slave trade on some occasions, freed several of his slaves, and represented both slaves and free blacks in legal proceedings, including instances where slaves sued for their freedom.<\/p>\n He was even called (and pardon me for quoting the word) \u201cThe Nigger Lawyer\u201d, and was credited by one writer with convincing him of the evils of slavery. On the other hand, he also represented slave owners fighting to keep their slaves, and did not free all of his own.[Leepson, 25-27]<\/sup> His record is complex. (Again, this is not to in any way justify or apologize for slavery, it is to attempt to put the man in the context of his time.)<\/p>\n It also strikes me that slaveholders in the late 18th and early 19th century often avoided the word \u201cslave\u201d or \u201cslavery\u201d in favor of various euphemisms. They spoke of the South\u2019s \u201cpeculiar institution\u201d, they put into the Constitution language about \u201cother Persons\u201d and the \u201cImportation of such Persons\u201d and \u201cPerson[s] held to Service or Labour.\u201d<\/p>\n The actual titles of the Fugitive Slave Acts of 1793 and 1850 were \u201cAn Act respecting fugitives from justice, and persons escaping from the service of their masters,\u201d (the same title for both acts, modulo capitalization) and neither act used the words \u201cslave\u201d or \u201cslavery\u201d anywhere in its text. [Statutes 1 302, Statutes 9 462]<\/sup><\/p>\n It\u2019s almost as if on some level they realized the shame of what they were doing. Given this habit I wonder if a slaveholder poet would be so bold as to refer directly to slaves \u2014 though this is just poetic speculation on my part.<\/p>\n We must also consider the slaves and free blacks who fought on the same side as Lieutenant Key. Black sailors made up about fifteen percent of the navy, and on some privateers made up the majority of the crew.[\u201cBlack Sailors\u201d]<\/sup> William Williams, an escaped slave, was one of the few American soldiers fatally wounded at the bombardment of Fort McHenry. Many of the workers who built the naval ships and privateers were free blacks.[U.S. National Park Service]<\/sup> And slaves helped dig the hastily-build fortifications that protected Baltimore\u2019s defenders.[ Iglehart]<\/sup><\/p>\n It would be extraordinarily thick-headed for Key to not realize that both enslaved and free blacks were fighting on his side, even if a handful were among the opposition.<\/p>\n It would take a time machine to find out for sure what Key meant by \u201cthe hireling and slave.\u201d But my judgment \u2014 possibly biased by Baltimorean pride, but I think still rooted in the facts \u2014 is that it was a poetic device to insult the British, and not a literal reference to those ex-slaves who were as determined to get their revenge on their American oppressors as the sailors of the U.S. were to get their revenge on their British ones.<\/p>\n And perhaps that\u2019s the important lesson of history here, sadly relevant to our time: the harder the powerful press the powerless, the more the powerless will be willing to fight as soon as the opportunity arises.<\/p>\n References:<\/p>\n \u201cBlack Sailors and Soldiers in the War of 1812\u201d PBS: The War of 1812.<\/i> http:\/\/www.pbs.org\/wned\/war-of-1812\/essays\/black-soldier-and-sailors-war\/<\/a><\/p>\n Iglehart, Ken. \u201cRevenge of the Mongrels.\u201d Baltimore Magazine.<\/i> Jun 2012. http:\/\/www.baltimoremagazine.net\/2012\/6\/1\/200-years-the-war-of-1812<\/a><\/p>\n Leepson, Marc. What So Proudly We Hailed: Francis Scott Key, A Life<\/i>. New Yorks: St. Martin\u2019s Press, 2014.https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=voPAAwAAQBAJ<\/a><\/p>\n McCauley, Mary Carole. \u201c\u2018Star-Spangled Banner\u2019 writer had complex record on race\u201d. Baltimore Sun<\/i> 26 Jul 2014. http:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/entertainment\/arts\/bs-ae-key-legacy-20140726-story.html<\/a><\/p>\n Morley, Jefferson. Snow-Storm in August: The Struggle for American Freedom and Washington\u2019s Race Riot of 1835<\/i> New York: Anchor Books, 2013. https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=xVRQ8NsrP5MC<\/a><\/p>\n Oakes, James. Review of \u201cThe Internal Enemy: Slavery and War in Virginia, 1772-1832\u201d by Alan Taylor. TruthDig.<\/em> http:\/\/www.truthdig.com\/arts_culture\/item\/the_internal_enemy_20131115<\/a><\/p>\n Parish, Elijah. A sermon preached at Byfield, on the annual fast, April 11, 1811 Newburyport, Mass. : E.W. Allen, 1811. http:\/\/purl.dlib.indiana.edu\/iudl\/general\/VAC2143<\/a><\/i><\/p>\n Spray, W.A. The Blacks In New Brunswick.<\/i> Human Relations Study Centre, St. Thomas University, 1972. http:\/\/atlanticportal.hil.unb.ca\/acva\/blackloyalists\/en\/context\/articles\/spray.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n The Spirit Of The Public Journals For 1801.<\/i> London: James Ridgway, 1802. https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=ibQPAAAAQAAJ<\/a><\/p>\n The Public Statutes At Large Of The United States of America, Vol 1.<\/i> http:\/\/legislink.org\/us\/stat-1-302<\/a><\/p>\n The Statutes At Large And Treaties Of The United States of America, Vol 9.<\/i> http:\/\/legislink.org\/us\/stat-9-462<\/a><\/p>\n Taylor, Alan. \u201cThe Battle for Baltimore,\u201d History Now 31 (Spring 2012): Perspectives on America\u2019s Wars.<\/em> The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. http:\/\/www.gilderlehrman.org\/history-by-era\/age-jefferson-and-madison\/essays\/battle-for-baltimore<\/a><\/p>\n U.S. National Park Service. \u201cWilliam Williams \u2013 Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine.\u201d https:\/\/www.nps.gov\/fomc\/learn\/historyculture\/william-williams.htm<\/a><\/p>\n Weiss, John McNish. \u201cThe Corps of Colonial Marines: Black freedom fighters of the War of 1812.\u201d 26 May 2015. http:\/\/www.mcnishandweiss.co.uk\/history\/colonialmarines.html<\/a><\/p>\n You can keep up with \u201cThe Zen Pagan\u201d by subscribing via RSS<\/a> or e-mail<\/a>.<\/p>\n Please consider supporting this blog with a donation or purchase.<\/a> The Zen Pagan Merch-o-rama has t-shirts, mugs, posters and prints, and stickers designed by yours truly.<\/p>\n If you do Facebook, you might choose to join a group on \u201cZen Paganism\u201d<\/a> I\u2019ve set up there. And don\u2019t forget to \u201clike\u201d Patheos Pagan<\/a> and\/or The Zen Pagan<\/a> over there, too.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" While Key was a slave-owner, he seems to have believed that slaves were due some humane treatment. (This is not to in any way justify slavery; it is to inquire whether he was, at the time, the sort of person who would rejoice at the death of slaves.) He actually spoke against the slave trade on some occasions, freed several of his slaves, and represented both slaves and free blacks in legal proceedings, including instances where slaves sued for their freedom.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1860,"featured_media":958,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[687,700,699,698,697],"class_list":["post-944","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-religion-politics","tag-baltimore","tag-colin-kaepernick","tag-francis-scott-key","tag-national-anthem","tag-war-of-1812"],"yoast_head":"\n
\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/560\/2016\/09\/Fort_McHenry_flag-889x1024.jpg\")
\nThat the havoc of war and the battle\u2019s confusion,
\nA home and a country, should leave us no more?
\nTheir blood has washed out their foul footsteps\u2019 pollution.
\nNo refuge could save the hireling and slave
\nFrom the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave:
\nAnd the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave,
\nO\u2019er the land of the free and the home of the brave.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nHis Country far him has no charms
\nBut the voice of fair Freedom is heard by the brave
\nAnd calls her own Britons to arms[\u201cSpirit\u201d, 239]<\/sup><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nWhether the Pontiff or the Turk
\nWill e\u2019er renew th expiring lease
\nOf Empire whether war or peace
\nWill best play off the Consul\u2019s game
\nWhat fancy figures and what name
\nHalf thinking sensual France a natural slave
\nOn those ne\u2019er broken chains her self forg\u2019 d chains will grave; [\u201cSpirit\u201d, 386]<\/sup><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nWho would fill a coward\u2019s grave
\nWho so base as be a slave
\nTraitor coward turn and flee
\nWhom shall Gallic threats appal
\nFly to glory\u2019s sacred call
\nFreemen stand or freemen fall
\nGallant Britons on with me[\u201cSpirit\u201d, 198]<\/sup><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
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