Military Through the Ages
March 19-20 • 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Jamestown Settlement
In just one weekend, visitors experienced centuries of military history during Jamestown Settlement’s time-honored “Military Through the Ages” event on Saturday and Sunday, March 19-20, 2022.
“Military Through the Ages” featured hundreds of re-enactors depicting armed forces from 500 B.C. all the way to modern-day soldiers with the Virginia Army National Guard. In a special “Salute to the Armed Forces,” visitors enjoyed the big-band sounds of musical performances from The Matt Fattal Big Band featuring Truetone Honeys on both days of the event. This unique chronological display of military history engaged visitors in exploring military encampments and interacting with re-enactors to learn how uniforms, weapons and tactics evolved through the centuries.
2022 Military Through the Ages Awards
The 2022 Military Through the Ages Re-enactor’s Choice Award was presented to American Forces, Hampton Roads, War of 1812. The Greek Phalax, representing 500 B.C., received the Visitors’ Choice Award, followed by The Civil War Impressionists with the Visitors’ Choice Award Honorable Mention.
Timeline from the 6th Century to the Virginia Army National Guard
Hundreds of re-enactors portrayed soldiers and military encounters from the medieval period, War of 1812, Napoleonic Wars and American Civil War. Re-enactors depicting World Wars I and II, and the Vietnam War took visitors through the 20th century. The U.S. Army Transportation Museum and Quartermaster Museum and the Virginia Army National Guard 111th Field Artillery represented the present day.
Truetone Honeys performed with The Matt Fattal Big Band at 12:30 and 3 p.m. each day.
Musical Performances
An artillery salute near the Discovery Tower signaled a “Salute to the Armed Forces” musical performances at 12:30 p.m. and 3 p.m. on both days of the event, with guests tapping their toes to the big-band sounds of The Matt Fattal Big Band featuring Truetone Honeys.
Military Aspects at Jamestown Settlement
Virginia Army National Guard fires a 105mm howitzer. Photo by Bob Ruegsegger.
Arms, armor and military accouterments of 17th-century Virginia can be seen year-round inside Jamestown Settlement’s extensive galleries, featuring films and interactive exhibits that tell the story of America’s first permanent English colony and of the Powhatan Indian, English and West Central African cultures in 1600s Virginia.
Visitors can immerse themselves in life of early Virginia in outdoor re-creations of a 1610-14 English fort, a Paspahegh town, and three re-created ships that brought English colonists to Virginia in 1607.