Snowden-Warfield
  Patriot's Corner · The Meaning of Patriotism · Pledges
 
 
Pledges
   
 

The Pledge of Allegiance

"I pledge allegiance to the Flag
Of the United States of America
And to the Republic for which it stands,
One nation, under God, indivisible,
With liberty and justice for all."

The original Pledge of Allegiance was written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister and prominent Boston socialist. It was first recited by schoolchildren on Columbus Day that year, the 400 th anniversary of the explorer's discovery of America . Its recitation soon became a daily ritual in public schools, though it was not given any official government until 1942 in the United States Flag Code. The Supreme Court held in 1943 that children could not be forced to take part in the daily pledge ritual. The wording has been modified three times, most significantly with the addition of the phrase "under God" in 1954.

   
 
 
     

Acknowledgements | Mission

©2005 George A. Scheele MD