"The Star Spangled Banner"

This month our patriotic song is "The Star Spangled Banner".  The lyrics are displayed and the students sing it every morning after the pledge.  We noticed that the lyrics have some words we didn't know.  So I decided to focus our first class blog questions around "The Star Spangled Banner". So kiddos, choose one or more questions to answer and comment on. 
***If someone has already answered a question and it is correct, pick another question to answer please.

Blog Questions:
-Who wrote "The Star Spangled Banner" and why?
-When was "The Star Spangled Banner" written?
-When did the U.S adopt "The Star Spangled Banner" as our national anthem?
-Was there a natioanl anthem BEFORE "The Star Spangled Banner"?
-What time of day is when "the dawn's early light"?
-What does "twilight's last gleaming" mean?
-What does "perilous fight" mean?
-What are "ramparts"?
-What dioes "gallently" mean?
**Can you give us any other cool or interesting facts about "The Star Spangled Banner"?

Have fun researching.  I can't wait to see your answers.
~Mrs. Hill