The imperial ensign; which, full high advanced,
Shone like a meteor streaming to the wind.

The imperial ensign; which, full high advanced,
Shone like a meteor streaming to the wind.

When Freedom from her mountain height
Unfurled her standard to the air,
She tore the azure robe read more

When Freedom from her mountain height
Unfurled her standard to the air,
She tore the azure robe of night,
And set the stars of glory there.

Under the sooty flag of Acheron,
Harpies and Hydras.

Under the sooty flag of Acheron,
Harpies and Hydras.

Ye mariners of England!
That guard our native seas;
Whose flag has braved a thousand years,
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Ye mariners of England!
That guard our native seas;
Whose flag has braved a thousand years,
The battle and the breeze!

This is the song of the wind as it came,
Tossing the flags of the Nations to flame.

This is the song of the wind as it came,
Tossing the flags of the Nations to flame.

England! Whence came each glowing hue
That hints your flag of meteor light,--
The streaming red, the read more

England! Whence came each glowing hue
That hints your flag of meteor light,--
The streaming red, the deeper blue,
Crossed with the moonbeams' pearly white?
The blood, the bruise--the blue, the red--
Let Asia's groaning millions speak;
The white it tells of colour fled
From starving Erin's pallid cheek.

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen stall stand
Between their loved home and the war's desolation!
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Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen stall stand
Between their loved home and the war's desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land
Praise the Power 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.

Hats off!
Along the street there comes
A blare of bugles, a ruffle of drums,
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Hats off!
Along the street there comes
A blare of bugles, a ruffle of drums,
A flash of color beneath the sky:
Hats off!
The flag is passing by.

United States, your banner wears
Two emblems--one of fame;
Alas! the other that it bears
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United States, your banner wears
Two emblems--one of fame;
Alas! the other that it bears
Reminds us of your shame.
Your banner's constellation types
White freedom with its stars,
But what's the meaning of the stripes?
They mean your negroes' scars.