Washington DC Fort Ring
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{"selectable":false,"height":"-800","width":"-800"} Washington DC Fort Ring - A ring of Union U.S. Civil War Forts scattered around the capital city's perimeter was erected early in the war to protect Washington, D.C. from the threat of Confederate assault. This ring included fortifications in Virginia and Maryland as well as Washington DC. By 1865 the Defenses of Washington DC were said to included some 68 named forts, 93 detached batteries, 20 miles of rifle pits, blockhouses at three key points and 32 miles of military roads. At the beginning of the war there was only a single fort, Fort Washington, protecting the city. These numbers are difficult to reconcile because of name changes, consolidations and upgrading of batteries to named forts. There is also confusion about what fortifications are included especially the permanent fortifications and the outlying fortifications at Baileys crossroads and Seven Corners. What can be said is that the city was ringed with connected fortifications and that the Virginia side defenses were especially dense with many fortification within close range of each other. The 37 mile circle of fortifications had platforms for some 1,500 field and siege guns with some 807 guns and 98 mortars in place. The list below attempts to include all of the named fortifications that surrounded Washington DC during the U.S. Civil War. It does not include camps, barracks, unnamed batteries and other administrative facilities. See Also:
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