The Pledge of Allegiance to the American Flag

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Download this free Pledge of Allegiance printable in PDF format. It includes the complete words of the pledge and the official United States flag (the American flag). The scroll down to see the history and how the pledge has evolved from it’s original version to the modern Pledge of Allegiance of our one Nation under God.

WORDS: I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.


Pledge of Allegiance - American Flag  Printable

Same as above, but it features a different font display with no outside border.


Most kids in the United States grew up reciting the Pledge of Allegiance at the beginning of each school day. For kids in our ministry, those days are long gone. Honoring our God & Country has fallen out of favor in many public schools in this country. However, these words are still to be heard in many VBS programs when students join together in their pledge time each morning during the opening assembly.

On Veteran’s Day the local American Legion holds programs to honor the US Military and display the American Flag. They will often lead the students to salute and recite the pledge.

Directions for Saying the Pledge to the United States Flag

The Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag … should be rendered by standing at attention facing the flag with the right hand over the heart. When not in uniform men should remove any non-religious headdress with their right hand and hold it at the left shoulder, the hand being over the heart. Persons in uniform should remain silent, face the flag, and render the military salute.”

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/4/4 (retrieved 10/30/2019)

The Bellamy salute to the flag started with the hand outstretched toward the flag, palm down, and ended with the palm up. Because of the similarity between the Bellamy salute and the Nazi salute, which was adopted in Germany later, the US Congress stipulated that the hand-over-the-heart gesture as the salute to be rendered by civilians during the Pledge of Allegiance and the national anthem in the US would be the salute to replace the Bellamy salute in 1942.

Different Words / Historic Versions of the Pledge of Allegiance

The “Pledge of Allegiance” has been expanded over its history. We are posting the current 1954 version on our printable version. For more history of these words, read the article on Wikipedia. You can also read more from the Encyclopedia Britannica article.


Francis Bellamy original Pledge of Allegiance

Francis Julius Bellamy was an American Christian socialist minister and author, best known for writing the original version of the U.S. Pledge of Allegiance in 1892. The Bellamy “Pledge of Allegiance” was first published in the September 8 issue of the popular children’s magazine The Youth’s Companion as part of the National Public-School Celebration of Columbus Day, a celebration of the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus‘s arrival in the Americas.

Pledge of Allegiance – Francis Bellamy original pledge
(changes are bolded and underlined)
1892 (first version)
“I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
1892 to 1923 (early revision by Bellamy)
“I pledge allegiance to my Flag and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
1923 to 1924
“I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
1924 to 1954
“I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
1954 – under God added to the pledge
(current version, per 4 U.S.C. §4 – official government version approved by Congress)
“I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

Our website has free print versions to download of all three VBS pledges – Bible, Christian, and American flag. We’ve also posted a text printable “Thank You for Your Service” card for Veteran’s Day.

The United States Pledge of Allegiance Translated into Spanish, German, and French

Spanish: “Yo prometo lealtad a la bandera de los estados Unidos de America, y a la Republica que representa, una Nacion bajo Dios, entera, con libertad y justicia para todos.”

German: “Ich gelobe Treue auf die Fahne der Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika, auf die Republik, die eine Nation unter Gott ist, vereinigt durch Freiheit und Gerechtigkeit fur alle.”

French: J’engage ma fidélité au drapeau des États-Unis d´Amérique et à la République qu’il représente, une nation sous Dieu, indivisible, avec liberté et justice pour tous.”

https://www.sos.wa.gov/flag/pledge.aspx (retrieved 10/30/2019)

The Pledge has had it’s share of controversy and has faced legal challenges that extend to the Supreme Court. Recent questions have been raised over the inclusion in public schools, especially with the phrase “under God” which wasn’t added until 1954. Some object to the government requiring or promoting the phrase “under God” violates protections against the establishment of religion guaranteed in the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.[48][49]

2 thoughts on “The Pledge of Allegiance to the American Flag”

  1. The latest version of the pledge has Nation with a capital letter and no comma
    after it (such as -one Nation under God). Which is the correct script?

  2. This summer my sister brought up an old US Flag our dad had 25 years ago.We had a small ceremony.What a beautiful tribute to dad and the country he loved.
    I am planning a 4 th of July for my children,grandchildren and great grandchildren.
    They will get a chance to fold the flag(if possible) say the pledge of allegiance.Then the proper salute (hand over hart or hand salute)
    Hope they learn!

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