On August 24, 1814, British forces under Major General Robert Ross and Rear Admiral George Cockburn marched into Washington, D.C., and set fire to the nation's most important buildings. They burned the Capitol, the White House, the Treasury, and the War Department. This remains the only time a foreign power has captured and occupied the American capital. The attack was retaliation for American troops burning York (Toronto) and Port Dover in Canada the previous year. British commanders had strict