On August 24, 1814, during the War of 1812 between the United States and
England, British troops entered Washington, D.C. and burned the White
House in retaliation for the American attack on the city of York in Ontario,
Canada, in June 1813.

When the British arrived at the White House, they found that President
James Madison and his first lady Dolley had already fled to safety in
Maryland. Soldiers reportedly sat down to eat a meal made of leftover
food from the White House scullery using White House dishes and silver
before ransacking the presidential mansion and setting it ablaze.

President James Madison and wife Dolly.