Battle Hymn of the Republic Published: The Song That Marched the Union to War
Julia Ward Howe wrote "Battle Hymn of the Republic" in one night at the Willard Hotel in Washington. She'd visited Union Army camps the day before and couldn't sleep. She woke at dawn with the words fully formed and scribbled them in the dark so she wouldn't wake her baby. The Atlantic Monthly paid her $4. It became the Union's anthem. She later said she had no memory of writing it — just waking up and finding it done.
February 1, 1862
164 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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