Today I went on a tour of the Capitol Building (picture of the Rotunda). It was pretty impressive. What I didn't know, or had forgotten, was this was our second Capitol Building. The construction of the first building to house the U.S. Senate, House of Representatives and Judiciary System (Supreme Court) began in 1799 and was completed many years later. Much slave labor was involved in the construction of the massive building. However, in August 1814, the British came in and set the entire building on fire. Very little survived the blazing inferno. The British were hopeful that the devastation of the U.S. Capitol would break down the resolve of our nation. Little did they know how very wrong they were! It only strengthed our resolve and we defeated them in resounding victory!