when did the burning of washington dc happen
Burning of Washington The Burning of Washington was a British attack against Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States, during the War of 1812. On August 24, 1814, after defeating the Americans at the Battle of Bladensburg, a British force led by Major General Robert Ross occupied Washington and set fire to many public buildings, including the White House (known as the Presidential Mansion), and the Capitol, as well as other facilities of the U.S. government.[2] The attack was in part a retaliation for the recent American destruction of Port Dover in Upper Canada. It marks the only time in U.S. history that Washington, D.C. has been occupied by a foreign force.
Burning of Washington The Capitol reconstruction took much longer than anticipated. The Old Brick Capitol took only five months to complete; the Capitol took twelve years.[18] A committee appointed by Congress to investigate the damage to the District concluded that it was cheaper to rebuild the already existing and damaged buildings than to build an entirely new one.[62] On February 13, 1815, President Madison and Congress passed legislation to borrow $500,000 to repair the public buildings, including the Capitol, "on their present sites in the city of Washington".[63] Benjamin Latrobe, architect of the Capitol who took over for William Thornton in 1803, was rehired to repair the building on April 18, 1815.[64] He immediately requested 60,000 feet of boards, 500 tons of stone, 1,000 barrels of lime, and brick.[64] With the $500,000 borrowed from Washington banks,[61] Latrobe was able to rebuild the two wings and the central dome before being fired in 1818 for being difficult.[65] Charles Bulfinch took over and officially completed the renovations by 1826.[18] Bulfinch modified Latrobe’s design by increasing the height of the Capitol dome to match the diameter of 86 ft. With the reconstruction of the public buildings in Washington, the value of land in the area increased dramatically, paving the way for the expansion of the city that developed in the years leading up to the American Civil War.[66]