"O'er the Ramparts"

[rjy]

Delightful! Great aha! and perfect for the 4th… Cheers, all!

[hoover]

Dang, that was clever!

[ImOnToo]

The couch is vacant.

Almost didn’t get out of my own way.

A smile inducer, indeed.

[Bob cruise director]

Either a brilliant meta or one of the strangest coincidences of metadom.

I am claiming that I am off the couch

[Cap'n Rick]

Leaderboard

Okay, we're off to another great start with 43 solvers including testers:

Abide (TS)
Al Sisti (TS)
boharr (TS)
whimsy (TS)
MarkWoychick (TS)
benchen71
Dow Jones
woozy
markhr
Schmeel
Berto
Cindy Heisler
Bird Lives
Meg
Cindy Weatherman
BarbaraK
THC
FrankieHeck
cbarbee002
JM
ChrisKochmanski
KayW
lbray53
hcbirker
Tyrpmom
MatthewL
ajk
ky-mike
Wendy Walker
Laura M
Gutman
HeadinHome
rjy
andeux
Mr Tex
hoover
Bbaack
imontoo
michaelm
Bob cruise director
LindaPRmaven
merlinnimue
DrTom

Please let me know if I've missed anyone.

[MaineMarge]

@Cap'n Rick we salute you! You da smart guy!
Loved it
OTC and now out to the garden to check on the bright red baby peony, AMERICA

[Qmark]

super...thanks Cap'n Rick!
Happy 4th from the Great White North!

[Cap'n Rick]

Leaderboard Update

Eight more Muggles bring our solver total to 51:

merlinnimue
MaineMarge
TMart
Qmark
Carolyn
SJMcK
BrennerTJ
CPJohnson

Nudges on the way!

[CPJohnson]

Solved, after a prompt from @Cinny to do the obvious. Thanks, Cap'n Rick!

[Cap'n Rick]

Wednesday Nudges

Let's see if we can kick things up a notch with some helpful hints.

Around these parts, we're not sheepish when it comes to celebrating our independence!

Hmm, I wonder if that cross at 32D and 42A was a coincidence...

"The Star-Spangled Banner" was written after the British bombed Fort McHenry in Baltimore. Fortunately, they never got close enough to use a battering ram!

Funny little contraction "o'er". It's common fill in a lot of puzzles, but here it plays an important role.

The key to solving this meta is, well..., "Key".

Please feel free to PM me if you'd like more help.

[Eric Porter]

Thanks for the puzzle and the hints. I'm finally OTC.
I'm visiting my sister's family for the holiday and this is one that her young daughters could probably have helped with, despite likely never having done a crossword before.

[whimsy]

Loved this one when I tested!

[minimuggle]

OTC.... thanks for a great puzzle!

[Cap'n Rick]

Thanks for the puzzle and the hints. I'm finally OTC.
I'm visiting my sister's family for the holiday and this is one that her young daughters could probably have helped with, despite likely never having done a crossword before.

Thanks, @Eric Porter. Yeah, you don't have to be a history buff to solve this one.

[minimuggle]

I got the answer and was so impressed by the clever construction. Then just now the other shoe dropped and I realized the sheer genius of it. It ties together perfectly. Thanks, this one will stick with me.

[PuzNewbie]

Started and solved today. Wonderful fun!! Great construction and meta. Thanks for the fun!

[MikeyG]

@Cap'n Rick's puzzles always make me smile. Consistent, tight construction, as usual! A great epiphany and a lot of fun!

[Cap'n Rick]

Leaderboard update

Nine more Muggles bring our solver total to an even 60:

Eric Porter
minimuggle
Pair O Ducks
DCBilly
Snood
PuzNewbie
david
Sharkicicles
MikeyG

Please let me know if I've missed anyone.

[ReB]

Well, I needed one more kick from Cap'n Rick, but I'm finally off the couch.

[Cap'n Rick]

Leaderboard Update

Seven more Muggles have gotten "o'er the ramparts" bringing our solver total to 67:

Steve M
Hector
Matt A
ReB
Anita and Steve
Deb W
Katiedid

Here's a bonus nudge for anyone who may still be struggling:

"Ramparts" should be parsed as "ram parts" in the grid. Look at the grid entries above (i.e. "o'er") these anatomical "parts" to find the 8-letter answer, which can also be parsed like "ramparts".