Corbis As the British neared the White House, Dolley Madison directed that a Gilbert Stuart portrait of George Washington be removed. The Montpelier Foundation James Madison valued his wife's ...

British seizure of American seamen pushed James Madison to ask Congress for a declaration of war in June 1812. The United States entered the conflict without a strong military. Consequently, early ...

James Madison, the "Father of the Constitution ... In 1814 the British went so far as to burn the White House and Capitol Building as a fleeing Madison watched from across the Potomac.