Beginning in 1846, the United States and Mexico fought a bitter two-year war over territorial claims to Texas and American westward expansion. One of the two major military campaigns in this grueling conflict was the U.S. invasion of northern Mexico. Learn from Museum educator and historian Dr. John Maass about the Army’s challenges fighting in difficult terrain against determined Mexican resistance, and the emergence of Zachary Taylor as a talented American general.
John R. Maass is an education specialist at the National Museum of the United States Army. He received a Ph.D. from the Ohio State University in early U.S. history and military history. His most recent book is “From Trenton to Yorktown: Turning Points of the Revolutionary War” (2025).
Register for the VIRTUAL Battle Brief on April 1 at 7 p.m. ET
This program is offered VIRTUALLY and IN-PERSON on Tuesday, April 8. Museum guests may attend in-person. Seats are limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Register for the VIRTUAL Battle Brief on April 8 at 12 p.m. ET
Register for the IN-PERSON Battle Brief on April 8 at 12 p.m. ET
During the cagey maneuvers of veteran British and American forces in Virginia leading up to the Siege of Yorktown in 1781, troops under the Marquis de Lafayette and Lt. Gen. Charles, Lord Cornwallis faced off in a short but bloody battle on the banks of the James River on July 6. Discover the story of the Battle of Green Spring during the Revolutionary War with military historian and Museum educator John Maass and learn how this close-range battle nearly destroyed a contingent of the Patriots’ Army only three months before the war’s culminating military operation.
John R. Maass is an education specialist at the National Museum of the United States Army. He received a Ph.D. from the Ohio State University in early U.S. history and military history. His most recent book is “From Trenton to Yorktown: Turning Points of the Revolutionary War” (2025).
Register for the VIRTUAL Battle Brief on May 6 at 7 p.m. ET
This program is offered VIRTUALLY and IN-PERSON on Tuesday, May 6, 2025. Museum guests may attend in-person. Seats are limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Register for the VIRTUAL Battle Brief on May 13 at 12 p.m. ET
Register for the IN-PERSON Battle Brief on May 13 at 12 p.m. ET
On a cool spring morning in Massachusetts, shots rang out at Lexington on April 19, 1775, in a clash between colonial militiamen and British redcoats on the village green. This sharp skirmish began what soon became the Revolutionary War. Join historians John Maass and Rob Orrison for a close look at the opening battles of the conflict in the Boston area.
John R. Maass is an education specialist at the National Museum of the United States Army. He received a Ph.D. from the Ohio State University in early U.S. history and military history. His most recent book is “From Trenton to Yorktown: Turning Points of the Revolutionary War.” (2025).
Rob Orrison received a bachelor’s degree in historic preservation at Longwood University and a master’s degree in public history from George Mason University. Currently Rob serves as the Division Manager for the Prince William County Office of Historic Preservation. He is the author of “The Battles of Lexington and Concord and the Beginning of the American Revolution, April 19, 1775.” (2018).
Register for the VIRTUAL Battle Brief on June 3 at 7 p.m. ET
This program is offered VIRTUALLY and IN-PERSON on Tuesday, June 10, 2025. Museum guests may attend in-person. Seats are limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Register for the VIRTUAL Battle Brief on June 10 at 12 p.m. ET.
Register for the IN-PERSON Battle Brief on June 10 at 12 p.m. ET