Most Hallowed Ground

Day 1: Arrive Washington, DC – the perfect place for Civil War tours to begin

Tour begins: The Mayflower Renaissance Washington, DC Hotel, 5:30 PM. A transfer is included from Ronald Reagan National Airport or Dulles International Airport to The Mayflower® Renaissance Washington, DC Hotel. The Civil War began 150 years ago this April. Over the next 11 days with Tauck, you'll embark on one of our two Civil War tours – and you’ll develop a deeper understanding of the war and its legacies. Visit key places where the war was fought, that “most hallowed ground”... listen to stories in the words of people who were there... and meet scholars, experts and living historians who interpret its lessons today. Learn about the days ahead through a filmed vignette by Ken Burns during tonight’s welcome cocktail reception, followed by dinner.

Day 2: House Divided: Ford's Theatre and a Visit to Arlington

Most Hallowed Ground begins by fast-forwarding to the end of the conflict – the tragic night of April 14, 1865 – for a deeper understanding of the beginning. Visit the newly restored Ford’s Theatre National Historic Site, where President Abraham Lincoln was fatally shot that evening by actor John Wilkes Booth. Explore the theatre and its museum, and enjoy a talk by a National Park Service ranger. Then a guided sightseeing tour examines the beginnings of the nation’s capital as well as its role in the Civil War, and views the White House, the Capitol, the Mall, and the Jefferson and Lincoln memorials. The human cost of the war, as well as its ironies, commands your attention on a poignant visit to Arlington National Cemetery, where 285,000 veterans of America’s wars are buried on what before the Civil War had been the estate of General Robert E. Lee. Bear witness to heroism and sacrifice on a private tour including gravesites of Civil War dead, the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns, and the JFK Memorial; visit Arlington House, Lee’s former home, now a memorial to the Confederate leader. After dinner, an evening tour of Washington and its monuments, dramatically illuminated at night, is a highlight of Tauck's Civil War tours.

Day 3 - American Stories: The National Archives

The seeds of discontent that grew into secession and war are brought to light in a Tauck Exclusive keynote presentation at your hotel by a noted Civil War historian on events occurring during the 36th U.S. Congress (1859-1861). Stories recounted include abolitionist John Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry and his subsequent execution; Abraham Lincoln’s election; the secession of seven states, and the shelling of Fort Sumter in April, 1861. A Tauck Exclusive – another behind-the-scenes look at the Civil War tours the Rotunda of the National Archives, where early admission provides a private viewing of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, with welcome comments by an Archives insider. Then go behind the scenes with an Archives researcher to learn how modern archival techniques preserve both great documents and stories of individual Americans. Spend the rest of the day as you please in Washington.

Day 4: "Bloody Antietam" to Gettysburg

Heading outside the Beltway into Maryland, stop in oft-embattled Frederick for a guided visit to the National Museum of Civil War Medicine. Exhibits tell inspiring stories of care, healing and courage in the face of the war’s grim realities, and advances that changed medicine forever, such as the innovations of field surgeon Dr. Jonathan Letterman, whose system for treating battlefield casualties is still in use today. In Sharpsburg in 1862, a little creek gave its name to American history’s bloodiest single day of combat; your guided tour of Antietam National Battlefield includes the story of Burnside’s Bridge. Travel to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania; a Ken Burns vignette offers insights on the town’s destiny as the site of the “high water mark of the Rebellion.” After lunch at a 19th-century Gettysburg inn, begin your experience of this most hallowed ground at Gettysburg National Military Park’s new Visitor Center, with its acclaimed film presentation and a multi-sensory experience in the amazing Cyclorama that brings vividly to life the sights and sounds of the battles that raged here on July 1-3, 1863 with 360-degree spectacle. Then drive with a Gettysburg expert through some of the battlefields – eerily peaceful today – viewing pivotal sites and hearing their stories, such as Col. Joshua Chamberlain’s defense of Little Round Top, and the courage and futility of Pickett’s Charge. Many Civil War tours visit Gettysburg, but none bring the special insights that Tauck does.

Day 5: A visit to a private home, a trip to Harpers Ferry, and the magnificent Skyline Drive

More than 50,000 men on both sides were killed, wounded or missing at Gettysburg; about 6,000 lie in the national cemetery here, which Lincoln dedicated with his famous address later that year. Many of the thousands of wounded were attended to at makeshift field hospitals like the one at the Jacob Weikert Farm, today a private home. On your Tauck Exclusive visit, you’ll meet the current owners, hear their stories and see the scars of battle that remain in the home nearly 150 years later. Traveling to Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, a Ken Burns vignette sets up your visit to the site of John Brown’s failed 1859 raid on the town’s federal arsenal, where the abolitionist was captured and most of his 21-man “army” were killed. Ride the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains along Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park; overnight at Big Meadows Lodge.

Day 6: President James Madison's Montpelier and on to Charlottesville

The Civil War was fought in 10,000 places, the majority of them in the South; armies swept across American farms and burned American towns, and homes became headquarters and hospitals. A look at life at one of those homes in the prewar South begins at Montpelier, the former estate of President James Madison and his wife Dolley, nestled in the foothills of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains. Discover the home’s early history and way of life in the years between the Revolution and the Civil War; see archaeological work being done on the estate. After a filmed vignette by Ken Burns en route, arrive in Charlottesville and visit the University of Virginia’s landmark Rotunda and Grounds, described by its designer Thomas Jefferson as an “academical village.” Tonight is alive with inspirational sounds at another Tauck Exclusive: a private performance of authentic gospel and spiritual music by the choir of Charlottesville’s Mt. Zion First African Baptist Church.

Day 7: Intriguing Monticello and an exclusive lecture

You’ll feel the presence of author, statesman, scientist and third U.S. President Thomas Jefferson throughout your guided visit to Monticello, the hilltop house he designed on the principles of Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio. As you explore the house, plantation and grounds, you’ll observe that the realities of plantation life did not always fit comfortably with the founding father’s principles of equality and liberty. After lunch featuring colonial fare and servers in 18th-century period attire at the historic Michie Tavern, enjoy a Tauck Civil War Tours Exclusive: a lively private presentation on “Slavery, the Plantation and the Civil War” by Dr. Leni Sorensen, scholar, living history interpreter, and African American Research Historian for the Thomas Jefferson Foundation at Monticello.

Day 8: Appomattox and on to Richmond

Journey this morning from Charlottesville to Appomattox Court House. Town resident Wilmer McLean had moved to this quiet village to escape the tumult of war after the First Battle of Bull Run had raged across his property in 1861. But on the afternoon of April 9, 1865, he was reluctantly thrust into history when Generals Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant met in his parlor and agreed to terms which would lead to the reunification of the nation – so in another of the war’s great ironies, it could be said that the conflict began in McLean’s backyard and ended in his parlor four years later! Relive the moment on a visit to McLean’s reconstructed house with a local guide, and gain insights from a Ken Burns vignette en route to Richmond and a three-night stay at The Jefferson Hotel, the city’s finest since 1895.

Day 9: Richmond, Heart of the Confederacy

An in-depth view of the war from various perspectives awaits in Richmond, once the Confederate capital. Hear the story of Robert E. Lee’s divided loyalties on a guided visit to the Rotunda of the Virginia State Capitol, where Lee accepted command of the Army of Northern Virginia, and stand in the space shared by the Virginia legislature and the Confederate government during the war. Examine the life of Confederate President Jefferson Davis in his wartime home, the White House of the Confederacy; step back to the time he resided here with his family on a guided visit, and take a self-guided tour of the Museum of the Confederacy. After lunch, experience Union, Confederate and African American viewpoints at the American Civil War Center at Historic Tredegar and the Tredegar Iron Works, the Confederacy’s industrial heart. In another Tauck Civil War Tours Exclusive, meet with a local historian who shares insights about the unique role of the Tredegar works, along with little-known facts about “industrial slavery.”

Day 10: Petersburg, and a visit to the National Museum of the Civil War Soldier

Explore the siege of Petersburg on a tour of Petersburg National Battlefield, where you’ll view re-creations of troop bunkers and officers’ quarters, and relive the drama of battle with the iconic story of The Crater. Then enjoy a unique glimpse of what life was really like in the field with a powerful interactive experience at Pamplin Historical Park and the National Museum of the Civil War Soldier – where you’ll assume the identity of an actual Union or Confederate soldier, listen to his own words and stories through your headset, and learn his ultimate destiny during the war. You’ll also see Civil War reenactors depicting camp life, musket firings and other period demonstrations. Tonight, enjoy a farewell reception and dinner at your stately Richmond hotel featuring a final farewell filmed vignette by Ken Burns.

Day 11 - Journey Home

Tour ends: Richmond. Fly home anytime. A transfer is included from The Jefferson Hotel to Richmond Int’l Airport; one-time transfers are provided to Washington’s Reagan Nat’l Airport or Dulles Int’l Airport. Allow two hours for check-in.