Bit of Trivia you may not have known About The Pledge of Allegiance

The Pledge of Allegiance of the United States is recited when saluting the Flag of the U.S. It was composed by Colonel George Balch in 1887 It was revised by Francis Bellamy in 1892 before being adopted by Congress as the pledge in 1942. The pledge was changed to include "Under God" in 1954.

The pledge is recited in opening sessions of Congress as well as other government meetings. Schools commonly recite the pledge at the beginning of the day. The pledged should be said while standing at attention facing the flag with the right hand over the heart. Men not in uniform should remove any non religious headdress with their right hand and then place the right hand over the heart. Those in uniform should remain silent, face the flag and salute the flag military style. Those who belong to the Armed Forces not in uniform and veterans may render the military salute in the manner provided for persons in uniform

The pledge as we know it today was composed in August 1892 by Francis Bellamy. Bellamy was a baptist minister and the cousin of socialist Utopian novelist Edward Bellamy. A previous version of the pledge had been written by George Balch. Balch a veteran of the Civil War who later worked for the New York Board of Education created the original pledge. The original flag began 

We give our heads and hearts to God and our country one country, one language, one flag

Balch wanted to teach our children, all of our children, to be loyal to the U.S. He wanted every school and classroom to have a flag to say the pledge to. Balch's pledge was stated by the Daughters of the American Revolution until the 1910's. 

The pledge that Bellamy created was to be quick and to the point. The pledge can be recited in 15 seconds. Francis Bellamy worked closely with the schools to create the pledge. The pledge was first used in public schools on October 12th 1892. First used during the Columbus Day observance in Chicago Illinois

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