While Donald Trump jetted away from Washington DC for a weekend retreat in New Jersey, hundreds of his supporters descended on the city to demand protection for "traditional American culture”.

Protesters came from around the country for the so-called "Mother of All Rallies" (MOAR) – a pro-Trump, right-wing protest that organisers billed as the “Woodstock of American Rallies”.

“MOAR will send a message to the world that the voices of mainstream Americans must be heard,” organisers wrote on the MOAR website. “We are coming together to send a direct message to Congress, the media and the world that we stand united not divided to protect and preserve American Culture.”

On Facebook, organisers said they hoped to rally one million people to DC in support of their cause. Washington Metropolitan police said they expected 1,800 people. Journalists on the ground estimated the crowd size at 1,000.

Right-wing militia groups, such as the Three Percenters, Proud Boys, and the American Guard, made up a large portion of the protest. The American Guard advocates for “the preservation of western culture", while the Proud Boys describe themselves as “Western chauvinists”. The Three Percenters advocate for an armed resistance to government overreach.

Many attendees wore red "Make America Great Again" baseball hats, while others carried flags for "Kekistan" – a fictional country that some internet-centric right-wing activists claim as their homeland. An American-flag-festooned "Trump truck" pulled a trailer with a “Trump MOAR” sign on it across the National Mall.

About 1,000 people turned out for the 'Mother of All Rallies,' according to reports (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

The MOAR website states that "all people, regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, age or political affiliation” were invited to the rally.

Before the protest, however, Gays for Trump president Peter Boykin told the Washington Post he would give a speech at the event condemning “Sharia law, transgender men and women in the military and the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program".

Other speakers included Marco Gutierrez, the co-founder of Latinos For Trump, and Hamody Jasim, the author of The Terrorist Whisperer.

Trump supporters rally on the National Mall for the 'Mother of All Rallies' (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images) (Getty)

The event marked one of the first far-right rallies since the white supremacist protest in Charlottesville, where dozens of people were injured and one was killed. In the wake of that rally, dozens of right-wing protests were cancelled, citing alleged threats from left-wing groups. Still others were dwarfed by crowds of counter-protesters who showed up.

Organisers for MOAR seemed attuned to the threat of counter-protestors, writing on their website that “anyone who would protest this rally is protesting America”. One speaker, Patriot Prayer founder Joey Gibson, lashed out at left-wing counter-protesters known as "Antifa", claiming they were “beating up grandmas".

According to reporters on the ground, however, the rally generated very little public push-back. A few counter-protesters turned up to debate the rally participants, mocking the relatively small size of the crowd.

One man was photographed standing outside of the crowd, holding a sign in honour of a counter-protester who was killed in Charlottesville.

“Heather Heyer, a true American patriot,” the sign read.

In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Show all 32 1 /32 In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump London An image of President Donald Trump is seen on a placard during the Women's March in London, England Getty In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Sydney A view of the skywriting word reading 'Trump' as thousands rally in support of equal rights in Sydney, New South Wales EPA In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Rome People shout and hold signs during a rally against US newly sworn-in President Donald Trump in Rome Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump London A protester holds a placard during the Women's March in London, England Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Marseille A placard ready 'Pussy grabs back' is attached to the handle bar of a bike during a 'Women's March' organized by Feminist and human rights groups in solidarity with women marching in Washington and around the world for their rights and against the reactionary politics of the newly sworn-in US President Donald Trump, at the Old Port (Vieux Port) of Marseille, southern France Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Bangkok A young Thai girl holds a "women's rights are human rights" sign at Roadhouse BBQ restaurant where many of the Bangkok Womens March participants gathered in Bangkok, Thailand Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Bangkok A Thai woman takes a photo of a "hate is not great" sign at the women's solidarity gathering in Bangkok, Thailand Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Bangkok American expats and travellers gather with the international community in Bangkok at the Roadhouse BBQ restaurant to stand in solidarity in Bangkok, Thailand Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump London Protetesters gather outside The US Embassy in Grosvenor Square ahead of the Women's March in London, England Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Marseille Women's March at the Old Port (Vieux Port) of Marseille, southern France Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Marseille Protestors hold placards reading 'My body my choice, my vote my voice' during a 'Women's March' organized by Feminist and human rights groups in solidarity with women marching in Washington and around the world for their rights and against the reactionary politics of the newly sworn-in US President Donald Trump, at the Old Port (Vieux Port) of Marseille, southern France Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Rome A person holds a sign during a rally against US newly sworn-in President Donald Trump in Rome Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Kolkata Activist Sarah Annay Williamson holds a placard and shouts slogan during the Women's March rally in Kolkata, India AP In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Kolkata Activists participate in the Women's March rally in Kolkata, India AP In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump London A Women's March placards are rested on a bench outside the US Embassy in Grosvenor Square ahead of the Women's March in London, England Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump London A women carries her placard ahead of the Women's March in London, England Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Manila Women protesters shout slogans while displaying placards during a rally in solidarity against the inauguration of President Donald Trump, in suburban Quezon city, northeast of Manila, Philippines AP In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Berlin Protesters attend a 'Berlin Women's March on Washington' demonstration in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany AP In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Berlin Protesters attend a 'Berlin Women's March on Washington' demonstration in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany AP In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Berlin Protesters attend a 'Berlin Women's March on Washington' demonstration in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany AP In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Melbourne Protesters take part in the Melbourne rally to protest against the Trump Inauguration in Melbourne, Australia Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Macau Protesters take part in the Women's March rally in Macau Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Melbourne Womens march on Melbourne protestors marching during a rally where rights groups marched in solidarity with Americans to speak out against misogyny, bigotry and hatred Rex In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Macau Protesters hold placards as they take part at the Women's March rally in Macau Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Macau Protesters hold placards as they take part at the Women's March rally in Macau, Macau. The Women's March originated in Washington DC but soon spread to be a global march calling on all concerned citizens to stand up for equality, diversity and inclusion and for women's rights to be recognised around the world as human rights Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Manila A mother carries her son as they join a rally in solidarity against the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump as the 45th President of the United States in suburban Quezon city northeast of Manila, Philippines AP In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Sydney An infant is held up at a demonstration against new U.S. President Donald Trump in Sydney, Australia Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Sydney A woman attends a demonstration against new U.S. President Donald Trump in Sydney, Australia Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Sydney A woman expresses her Anti-Trump views in Sydney, Australia Getty Images In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump Sydeney Protesters demonstrate against new U.S. President Donald Trump in Sydney, Australia. The marches in Australia were organised to show solidarity with those marching on Washington DC and around the world in defense of women's rights and human rights Getty In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump London Protesters march from The US Embassy in Grosvenor Square towards Trafalgar Square during the Women's March in London, England Getty In pictures: Women of the world march against Trump London Protesters carrying banners take part in the Women's March on London, as they stand in Trafalgar Square, in central London Reuters

As the rally wound down, some participants said they were heading over to a protest nearby: a gathering of "horrorcore" rap fans who call themselves "juggalos". The juggalos are superfans of the rap duo Insane Clown Posse, identifiable by their black-and-white, clown-like face makeup.

The juggalos gathered outside the Lincoln Memorial on Saturday to protest the FBI’s classification of their group as a "loosely organised hybrid gang”. The Justice Department has placed the juggalos in the same group as overtly violent gangs like the Bloods and the Crips – a classification the fans dispute.