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In August the United States army was defeated just outside Washington DC by the worlds greatest military power President James Madison and his wife had just enough time to flee the White House before the British invaders entered British troops stopped to feast on the meal still sitting on the Madisons dining-room table before setting the White House on fire The extent of the destruction was massive finished in wood rather than marble everything inside the mansion was combustible Only the outer stone walls would withstand the fireThe tide of the War of would quickly turn however Less than a month later American troops would stand victorious at the Battle of Fort McHenry Poet Francis Scott Key struck by the sight of the American flag waving over Fort McHenry jotted down the beginnings of a poem that would be set to music and become the US national anthem xThe Star Spangled BannerxIn his compelling narrative style Peter Snow recounts the fast-changing fortunes of that summers extraordinary confrontations Drawing from a wealth of material including eyewitness accounts Snow describes the colorful personalities on both sides of those spectacular events including the beleaguered President James Madison and First Lady Dolley American heroes such as Joshua Barney and Sam Smith and flawed military leaders like Army Chief William Winder and War Secretary John Armstrong On the British side Snow re-creates the fiery Admiral George Cockburn the cautious but immensely popular Major General Robert Ross and sharp-eyed diarists James Scott and George GleigWhen Britain Burned the White House highlights this unparalleled moment in British and American history the courageous successful defense of Fort McHenry and the American triumph that would follow and Americas and Britains decision to never again fight each other.



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