The Burning of Washington and the Birth of the Anthem

In 1814 British forces captured Washington and set fire to the White House, U.S. Capitol and other public buildings, marking the lowest point in American history, with President James Madison fleeing to Virginia. But just three weeks later the enemy was repulsed at Fort McHenry, which refused to surrender during a naval bombardment by day and by night. An eyewitness, Francis Scott Key, recorded his ecstasy in a poem that became the words to the national anthem.

In this bicentennial year of the War of 1812, author/historian Anthony S. Pitch describes the dramatic scenes from his award-winning book