We will be visiting from the UK in August and will be spending three days in the Washington DC area.My interest is history and for two of those days I want to visit civil war sites. Gettysburg will take up one of those days. The other day will be at Antietam or Bull Run. Which should it be? Any suggestions will be appreciated

Manassas is the closer one to D.C. so I would go to that one. When in D.C. you are going to have so much to do anyway you will not want to travel. Don't pass up Mt. Vernon (George Washington's home) while you are in the area either. Not Civil War history but very beautiful place.

Tough choice. I have not yet been to Manassas but have been to lots of others, including Gettysburg and Antietam. I will say that Manassas is a great daytrip from D.C., whereas you could consider staying in Frederick, MD if you decide on Antietam because it is between Antietam and Gettysburg and has lots of food and hotel options. I can tell you that it is hard to beat Antietam for authenticity. Not only is the battlefield much the way it was in 1862, but the town too is still very small and un-touristy.

Yet another option for you is to visit Antietam early in the morning (it only takes less than half a day for a thorough tour) and head up to Gettysburg for close to 1 1/2 days there. Gettysburg has so much to offer, and it is not all that easy to tour the whole battlefield in any detail and see the museum, town, and cemetery in one day. It should take you 1 to 1 1/2 hours to travel from Sharpsburg to Gettysburg.

However, what might make the above not such a good option is if you haven't been to Washington before. There is simply so much to do and see in the capital. If you are a first time visitor, I would advise using a half day or just over to see Bull Run and over at least one whole day for Washington. In fact, in that case to attempt to see all three places in three days might not be a good idea. To really get much out of Gettysburg plan on at least one whole day there, so you should arrive the day or night before. Gettysburg's museum alone deserves 1-2 hours. It is one of the top 2-3 collections I have seen. You should expect 2-5 hours for the battlefield, but I spent 1 1/2 days seeing it and could have used more time. Allow another hour for the cemetery. It will probably be hot in August, but a great advantage for Gettysburg is that the park is open before light and after dark, and August has lots of daylight anyway.

Phil:

If you are more the Civil War buff than American History and government in general, I'd say start at Gettysburg and stay the day, travel to Frederick and stay there a day and then go to Manassas and stay a day. D.C. has so much to see that just being there one day doesn't even scratch the surface.

I would vote for Antietam over Manassas. The Manassas battlefield is surrounded by suburban sprawl and two major commuter roads cut through the battlefield.
If you decide to visit Antietam, you should also stop at Harpers Ferry which is only 18 miles away. Harpers Ferry was the site of John Brown's raid, one of the events leading to the start of the Civil War, and was also the site of civil war battle.

Though all concerned have valid points-of-view, I agree with SPQR. Manassas (the Southern and correct naming of the battles which occurred near the Bull Run Creek) is in the armpit of suburban sprawl. Antietam is located in a part of rural Maryland still holding out against suburban sprawl. The countryside is pretty and Harper's Ferry (site of John Brown's terrorism that helped lead to the War Between the States) is not far away. The Potomac River is unusually pretty northwest of Washington. Furthermore, from Antietam you can take a short excursion to the Grotto Caverns a few miles away.

I live in Chantilly, site of the Battle of Chantilly, the day after the 2nd Battle of Manassas, and I would definitely recommend that you see the Sharpsburg (Antietam) site. It's such an interesting battle with the folly of the Yankee generals, particularly Burnside and McClellan, so clearly on display. Unfortunately, President Lincoln was not fully appreciative of
Burnside's key contribution to the fiasco and promptly elevated him to McClellan's job, which led straightway to the disaster at Fredericksburg and ultimately to the disaster of the crater at Petersburg. Near Sharpsburg you can also go through the neat little town of Burkittsville where The Blair Witch Project was filmed and see the War Correspondents' Arch on South Mountain.

The last I heard, they show their long film at the Antietam visitors' center only at noon on Saturday.

Go to Antietam. The rte 234 area east of the the Manassas Battlefield looks like Sunrise Hwy on Long Island. And the traffic is almost as bad.

Didn't Fodors magazine have an article about a civil war driving tour in the area, maybe appearing sometime this past winter?

Try checking with Fodor's...