Two hundred years ago Sunday, August, 24, when America and the United Kingdom were enmeshed in the War of 1812, some Brits burned the White House to the ground.
So how did the British Embassy in America decide to celebrate this bicentennial — which some historians attribute as the turning point of the war? By joking about burning it down again, of course.
Shortly after realizing that putting sparklers on a White House cake was perhaps in poor taste, The Embassy’s Twitter account apologized for its tone deaf tweet:
More Must-Reads from TIME
- Where Trump 2.0 Will Differ From 1.0
- How Elon Musk Became a Kingmaker
- The Power—And Limits—of Peer Support
- The 100 Must-Read Books of 2024
- Column: If Optimism Feels Ridiculous Now, Try Hope
- The Future of Climate Action Is Trade Policy
- FX’s Say Nothing Is the Must-Watch Political Thriller of 2024
- Merle Bombardieri Is Helping People Make the Baby Decision
Contact us at letters@time.com