Prime View

What became Fort Smallwood provided an ideal vantage point for the beginning and end of the British assault on Baltimore in 1814. On September 11, ships anchored across the river from here, and more than 4,500 troops were rowed ashore at North Point to begin a land offensive. Meanwhile, warships arrived above present-day Key Bridge to attack Fort McHenry. On September 13-14, observers here would have seen rockets lighting the night sky and explosions at the fort as British attack vessels bombarded it from the Patapsco above present-day Key Bridge. On September 15-16, the defeated land troops returned to their waiting boats. Francis Scott Key watched the action from a truce ship with the British fleet and remained in custody until the soldiers had re-boarded their transport ships and weighed anchor. The experience inspired Key to write lyrics for what became the U.S. national anthem.

Maryland · United States