The Canadian city burned by American forces in 1813 was York, now known as Toronto.
York was the capital of Upper Canada and stood on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. On April 27, 1813, an American force supported by naval vessels attacked the settlement. The defenders were outnumbered, and Major General Roger Hale Sheaffe ordered British regulars to retreat after the fighting turned against them.
American troops captured the fort, dockyard, military supplies, and public buildings. During the occupation and withdrawal, soldiers looted property and set fire to important structures, including the Legislative Assembly buildings and Government House. The destruction was not a complete burning of the entire town, but it became one of the most remembered episodes of the conflict.
York was renamed Toronto in 1834, long after the war. Its destruction also became part of the cycle of retaliation during the War of 1812: British forces later burned public buildings in Washington, D.C., in 1814. Ottawa, Montreal, and Quebec City were not the city targeted in this 1813 attack.