Burning Washington, D.C.

From Eyewitness To History: The British Burn Washington, DC, 1814:

"...the city found itself the target of an invading British army slowly making its way from the Chesapeake Bay.

Washington had little strategic value - the thriving port of Baltimore was much more important. However, as capital of the nation, the British hoped that its burning would have a psychological impact on the will of the Americans to continue the conflict."