A patriot by birth, John Quincy Adams’s destiny was foreordained. He was not only “The Greatest Traveler of His Age,” but his country’s most gifted linguist and … Read the article
Many a soldier has had an exciting life. It’s not often that a solider shares the excitement and danger with his wife. But it is true of one redoubtable young officer and his … Read the article
Francis Scott Key loved poetry. From the time he was a child, he spun out rhyming verses with prolific regularity—verses that with one giant exception were at best overly flowery and at worse, embarrassingly amateurish. Verses that … Read the article
The only time other than 9/11 that an outside force has attacked the United States capital (Washington D.C.) was on 24 August 1814. And one man more than any other was responsible for it: George Cockburn, a … Read the article
On September 12, Baltimore was in view of the 50 British warships. To defend the city, some 14,000 militiamen joined 1,000 regulars. The most important fortification in the area was Fort McHenry, which guarded the access to … Read the article