Album: Faces of the Forts: (Defenses South of the Potomac River)

Civil War Defenses of Washington

The Defenses South of the Potomac comprised the fortifications guarding the southern approaches to Washington DC in Virginia (Arlington and Alexandria). The army designed and constructed an elaborate system of earthworks in Virginia consisting of forts, batteries, earthworks, and blockhouses. 33 major fortifications formed the nucleus of the Virginia defenses.