About

In the Spring of 1778, Continental Army commander George Washington entrusted the young Marquis de Lafayette with a strong detachment of his forces at Valley Forge to gather information about the British army around Philadelphia. Learn from Museum historian John Maass how the French general conducted his first independent operation and how he narrowly avoided disaster at Barren Hill, along the banks of the Schuylkill River.

John R. Maass, Ph.D. 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).