Francis Bellamy (1855–1931), a socialist priest, wrote the Pledge of Allegiance in August 1892. In reaction to the Communist menace of the period, President Eisenhower pushed Congress in 1954 to add the words "under God," resulting in the 31-word promise we use today.
According to one account, when Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels was attending a meeting of the National Security League in April 1898, he became annoyed by the opening prayer which included the phrase "one nation under God." So he ordered that the phrase be removed from all government documents and papers. This may have been the origin story told by John W. Davis (1862–1927), who went on to become a Supreme Court justice. But it's not true. The first reference to this idea is found in a book written by George M. Curtis (1837–1921) about his experiences as the secretary of the Pennsylvania Senate. In this book, he says President William McKinley asked that the phrase be removed from all official documents because it wasn't Americanism and could be misinterpreted by foreign nations.
There are other stories about how the pledge came to be said. For example, some say it was invented by Colonel Edward D. House (1838–1922), who served as president of Cornell University from 1884 to 1900.
On September 8, 1892, it was first published in The Youth's Companion. Bellamy had hoped that citizens from any country would take the vow. Instead, it became a national tradition for Americans to join in celebrating their nation's birthdays.
After Bellamy's death, his daughter Lillie insisted that it be kept simple and short. So, the original pledge consisted of just three sentences: "I pledge allegiance to my country America and to the republic for which it stands." A copy of this pledge is on file at the Library of Congress.
In 1919, when Congress passed a law requiring the federal government to issue an official flag for each state, they also required that each citizen submit a new pledge of allegiance to support their new flags. This amendment was proposed by Senator Robert LaFollette (R-Wisconsin) to counteract false claims by foreign countries that our flag was a symbol of oppression. The amended version of the pledge added two more sentences: "So help me God and the flag of the United States of America."
This amended version remains in effect today. It can be found in the Congressional Record - the official journal of proceedings of the Senate and House of Representatives where members record their opinions about issues before them.
Pledge of Allegiance Francis Bellamy (1855–1931), a socialist priest, wrote the Pledge of Allegiance in August 1892. Instead, only Americans entered into its spirit by adding "with liberty and justice for all" at the end.
Bellamy based the text on John Locke's idea of natural rights. In addition to being a priest, Bellamy was also an activist who worked with Mary Baker Eddy to create Christian Science. He wanted Christians to feel like they were part of one nation under God, so he included words of spirituality in the pledge.
During World War I, the government asked Bellamy to come up with something new to replace the old pledge because people weren't showing patriotism anymore. So he came up with three lines that became known as the "three little words." When asked how he felt about writing them, Bellamy said: "I felt like a divine messenger has taken charge of my hand. I could do no other than obey him."
Here are the three lines: "I pledge my love, my faith, my blood; one nation indivisible with liberty and justice for all."
They're now said by millions of Americans every day.
The promise was created in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, and it was officially accepted by Congress in 1942. Reaction and justification: The Pledge of Allegiance is composed of 31 words. Since the promise was formally established by Congress in 1942, numerous schools and students have learned and repeated it... full response below.
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