Defending the Nation's Capital

Located near the edge of the Confederacy, Washington, D.C., was under constant threat from Confederate forces. To guard against that threat, the city was ringed by earthen fortifications. In Northern Virginia, skirmishes, guerrilla raids, and major battles such as the Battle of Bull Run were a way of life. Although Union fortifications stood in the capital and in Maryland, the Virginia forts were especially important because they were Union outposts in a Confederate state. From here, soldiers likely could see travelers on Chain Bridge Road, Leesburg Pike, and possibly even Lewinsville Road, though none of those roads are visible from here today.

Tysons, Virginia · United States