Battle Briefs

“Return to Bull Run: The Second Manassas Campaign (pt. 1)” with John Maass

Tuesday, August 4, 2026 | 7 p.m. ET | Virtual

Tuesday, August 11, 2026 | 12 p.m. ET | Virtual and In-person

In the hot summer of 1862 in the Northern Virginia piedmont region, Union General John Pope took command of scattered Yankee forces guarding Washington, D.C. The boastful Pope soon adopted an offensive strategy against the opposing Confederate Army. Learn from Museum educator John Maass how Pope’s command fared on the battlefields around Manassas, fighting against two of the South’s best generals.

John R. Maass is a historian and educator at the National Museum of the U.S. Army. He received a BA in history from Washington & Lee University, and a PhD in early U.S. history from the Ohio State University. He served as an officer in the U.S. Army Reserve (80th Division). His most recent book is “The Battles of Spencer’s Ordinary and Green Spring, 1781” (2025).

Register for VIRTUAL Battle Brief on August 4 here

This program is offered VIRTUALLY and IN-PERSON on Tuesday, August 11, 2026. Museum guests may attend in-person. Seats are limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Register for VIRTUAL Battle Brief on August 11 here

Register for IN-PERSON Battle Brief on August 11 here

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The Rise and Fall of Horatio Gates

Tuesday, Sept 1, 2026 | 7 p.m. ET | Virtual

Tuesday, Sept 8, 2026 | 12 p.m. ET | Virtual and In-person

During the first two years of the Revolutionary War, former British Army officer Horatio Gates was a godsend to the American cause. A superb administrator, combat veteran of the Seven Years War, and the Continental Army’s second in command in 1775, he showed great promise in the fight for American liberty. And by the Fall of 1777, he had led the army that defeated the British and Hessians at Saratoga in the forests of northern New York, the war’s biggest victory to date. But as historian John Maass explains, Gates’s laurels turned to willows when the general turned against George Washington, suffered a crushing battlefield defeat in South Carolina in 1780, and became involved in mutinous actions at Newburgh, New York, in the war’s final year.

John R. Maass is a historian and educator at the National Museum of the U.S. Army. He received a BA in history from Washington & Lee University, and a PhD in early U.S. history from the Ohio State University. He served as an officer in the U.S. Army Reserve (80th Division). His most recent book is “The Battles of Spencer’s Ordinary and Green Spring, 1781” (2025).

Register for VIRTUAL Battle Brief on September 1 here

This program is offered VIRTUALLY and IN-PERSON on Tuesday, September 8, 2026. Museum guests may attend in-person. Seats are limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Register for VIRTUAL Battle Brief on September 8 here

Register for IN-PERSON Battle Brief on September 8 here

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We Caught the Bloody British: The Battle of New Orleans, 1814

Tuesday, Oct 6, 2026 | 7 p.m. ET | Virtual

Tuesday, Oct 13, 2026 | 12 p.m. ET | Virtual and In-person

In the closing months of the War of 1812, a large British army attacked American forces led by Maj. Gen. Andrew Jackson near New Orleans on January 8, 1815. Despite having Napoleonic War veterans in their ranks and Royal Navy support, the British were soundly defeated in what was the final major engagement of the conflict. Learn how U.S. troops and local militiamen won the battle for the American southwest with minimal losses and made Jackson a hero and eventually a United States president.

John R. Maass is a historian and educator at the National Museum of the U.S. Army. He received a BA in history from Washington & Lee University, and a PhD in early U.S. history from the Ohio State University. He served as an officer in the U.S. Army Reserve (80th Division). His most recent book is “The Battles of Spencer’s Ordinary and Green Spring, 1781” (2025).

Register for VIRTUAL Battle Brief on October 6 here

This program is offered VIRTUALLY and IN-PERSON on Tuesday, October 13, 2026. Museum guests may attend in-person. Seats are limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Register for VIRTUAL Battle Brief on October 13 here

Register for IN-PERSON Battle Brief on October 13 here

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