ABSTRACT
During the War of 1812, British troops landed near the nation's capital and proceeded to burn the Presidential Mansion, now known as White House. First Lady Dolly Madison barely escaped with a wagonload of public treasures and was not re-united with her husband for over twenty-four hours. By the end 1814 the war had stalemated, Andrew Jackson had scored his victory over the British at New Orleans, and a peace treaty was signed. The British were eventually forgiven for their unkind "act of war." On December 7, 1941 the naval installation at Pearl Harbor on the island territory of Oahu was bombed in a sneak attack by the Japanese. Over twenty-five hundred Americans lost their lives. The United States declared war on Japan and eventually extracted revenge.
