The oath of allegiance taken by Confederate soldiers at the end of the Civil War was more like the oath that the President, VP, and other officials of the Federal Government take; that is to "preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution," rather than swearing allegiance to the Flag. Here is a typical oath that was signed at the end of the Civil War:

"I,____, of the County of ___, State of ____, do so solemnly swear that I will support, protect, and defend the Constitution and Government of the United States against all enemies, whether domestic or foreign; that I will bear true faith, allegiance, and loyalty to the same, any ordinance, resolution, or laws of any State, Convention, or Legislature, to the contrary notwithstanding; and, further, that I will faithfully perform all the duties which may be required of me by the laws of the United States, and I take this oath freely and voluntarily without any mental reservations or [evasion??] whatsoever."

The Pledge of Allegiance was written for the popular children's magazine by Francis Bellamy, a minister, on September 7, 1892. Bellamy's original Pledge read as follows:

"I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

In 1923 the National Flag Conference called for the words "my Flag" to be changed to "the Flag of the United States." The reason given was to ensure that immigrants knew to which flag reference was being made. The words "of America" were added a year later. The U.S. Congress officially recognized the Pledge as the official national pledge on December 28, 1945.