The Star-Spangled Banner was written during the British attack on Fort McHenry in September 1814, during the War of 1812. The song was written by Francis Scott Key, a 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet, who witnessed the bombardment of the fort from a British ship where he was being held prisoner. Key was inspired by the sight of the American flag still flying over the fort after the British bombardment, and he wrote the poem that would become the national anthem of the United States.