Capture of the City of Washington

This engraving of the capture of Washington, D.C. during the War of 1812 was created by London printers J and J Cundee in 1815 and used as an illustration in an edition of Paul Rapin's multi-volume "History of England." British troops entered and burned the capital, including the White House, on August 24, 1814. Though British forces occupied the city for only a short time, they inflicted serious damage. President James Madison escaped the White House before the attack, but finished out his second term in the nearby Octagon House and a row house in "Six Buildings" complex on Pennsylvania while the White House was rebuilt.