Stuart retired as the assistant branch chief of the Military Archives at the National Archives in Washington in 1999 after thirty years in the U.S. government including three years in the U.S. Army. He attended Florida State and Florida Atlantic Universities and has a M.A. in American History with some additional post graduate work from George Mason University.  Since retiring, he has authored four books on Virginia and the War of 1812 and written numerous articles on military history for a variety of historical journals. During the War of 1812 Bicentennial observances in Virginia he served on the Commission’s Citizens Council Advisory Board. He has also lectured at the Osher Institute at William and Mary on topics in English medieval history and the War of 1812. He has also served as a judge for Virginia History Day for the past five years and for the Army Historical Foundation Book awards. He is currently the president of the Society of the War of 1812 in Virginia and also a member of the Jamestown Society and the American Descendants of the House of Burgesses. He has been a tour guide for visiting students in the Historic Triangle and Washington, DC for the past twenty-five years.  He has been  married for the past 50 years (in May)  and  has one daughter who is the Deputy Archivist of the U.S. Senate. When he is not otherwise engaged in the above activities he enjoys cruise travel when he can.