Pledge of Allegiance facts for kids

Students swearing the Pledge on Flag Day in 1899

The Pledge of Allegiance of the United States is an expression of allegiance to the Flag of the United States and the republic of the United States of America. It was originally composed by Colonel George Balch in 1887. It was changed by Francis Bellamy in 1892. It was formally adopted by the Congress as the pledge in 1942.

Images for kids

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  Col. George T. Balch wrote an early pledge of allegiance.

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  Rev. Francis Bellamy wrote the version that became official.

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  A plaque in Lansing, Michigan, dated 1918, listing the Balch Pledge, which was used parallel to the Bellamy Pledge until the National Flag Conference in 1923

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  George MacPherson Docherty (left) and President Eisenhower (second from left) on the morning of February 7, 1954, at the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church

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  Children performing the Bellamy salute to the flag of the United States, 1941.

See also

In Spanish: Juramento de Lealtad para niños