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215-705: Jackson's Valley campaign , also known as the Shenandoah Valley campaign of 1862 , was Confederate Maj. Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson's spring 1862 campaign through the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia during the American Civil War . Employing audacity and rapid, unpredictable movements on interior lines , Jackson's 17,000 men marched 646 miles (1,040 km) in 48 days and won several minor battles as they successfully engaged three Union armies (52,000 men), preventing them from reinforcing
430-489: A Federal detachment. Jackson lamented, "Never was there such a chance for cavalry. Oh that my cavalry was in place!" The Federals fled relatively unimpeded for 35 miles in 14 hours, crossing the Potomac River into Williamsport, Maryland . Union casualties were 2,019 (62 killed, 243 wounded, and 1,714 missing or captured), Confederate losses were 400 (68 killed, 329 wounded, and 3 missing). Word of Banks's ejection from
645-608: A cavalry command. "Jackson's Division" consisted of the brigades of Brig. Gen. Charles S. Winder, Col. John A. Campbell (wounded and replaced by Col. John M. Patton Jr. ), and Col. Samuel V. Fulkerson (replaced by Brig. Gen. William B. Taliaferro). The Second Division, commanded by Maj. Gen. Richard S. Ewell , consisted of the brigades commanded by Col. W.C. Scott (replaced by Brig. Gen. George H. Steuart ), Brig. Gen. Arnold Elzey (replaced by Col. James A. Walker ), Brig. Gen. Isaac R. Trimble , Brig. Gen. Richard Taylor , and Brig. Gen. George H. Steuart (an all- Maryland brigade known as
860-434: A contingent of 6-pounder guns. The Hampton Legion, some 600 men strong, managed to buy Jackson time to construct a defensive line on Henry House Hill by firing repeated volleys at Sherman's advancing brigade. Hampton had purchased approximately 400 Pattern 1853 Enfield rifles to equip the men with; however, it is not clear if his troops had them at Bull Run or if the weapons arrived after the battle. If so, they would have been
1075-644: A few artillery rounds across Mitchell's Ford on the Confederate right, some of which hit Beauregard's headquarters in the Wilmer McLean house as he was eating breakfast, alerting him to the fact that his offensive battle plan had been preempted. Nevertheless, he ordered demonstration attacks north toward the Union left at Centreville. Bungled orders and poor communications prevented their execution. Although he intended for Brig. Gen. Richard S. Ewell to lead
1290-532: A former Ohio governor and senator. Now, through Chase's influence, McDowell was promoted three grades to brigadier general in the Regular Army and on 27 May was assigned command (by President Abraham Lincoln ) of the Department of Northeastern Virginia, which included the military forces in and around Washington ( Army of Northeastern Virginia ). McDowell immediately began organizing what became known as
1505-410: A glorious but dear-bought victory. Night closed on the enemy in full flight and closely pursued." The battle was a clash between relatively large, ill-trained bodies of recruits, led by inexperienced officers. Neither army commander was able to deploy his forces effectively; although nearly 60,000 men were present at the battle, only 36,000 had actually been engaged. Although McDowell had been active on
1720-568: A hero at First Manassas, was familiar with the valley terrain, having lived there for many years. His command included the Stonewall Brigade and a variety of militia units. In December, Jackson was reinforced by Brig. Gen. William W. Loring and 6,000 troops, but his combined force was insufficient for offensive operations. While Banks remained north of the Potomac River , Jackson's cavalry commander, Col. Turner Ashby , raided
1935-549: A higher rate than poor men because they had more to lose. Slavery helped provide them with wealth and power, and they felt that the Civil War would destroy everything that they had if they lost because they saw slavery as the foundation of their wealth, which was under threat and caused them to fight hard. At many points during the war, and especially near the end, the Confederate armies were very poorly fed. At home their families were in worsening condition and faced starvation and
2150-530: A key ridge south of the town. He ordered Charles Winder's Stonewall Brigade to occupy the hill, which they did with little opposition, but they were soon subjected to punishing artillery and small arms fire from a second ridge to the southwest—Bower's Hill, the extreme right flank of the Federal line—and their attack stalled. Jackson ordered Taylor's Brigade to deploy to the west and the Louisianians conducted
2365-547: A lower grade officer. Barring the same type of circumstances that might leave a lower grade officer in temporary command, divisions were commanded by major generals and corps were commanded by lieutenant generals. A few corps commanders were never confirmed as lieutenant generals and exercised corps command for varying periods as major generals. Armies of more than one corps were commanded by (full) generals. There were four grades of general officer ( general , lieutenant general , major general , and brigadier general ), but all wore
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#17327725075642580-583: A month later in May 1865. By the time Abraham Lincoln took office as President of the United States on March 4, 1861, the seven seceding slave states had formed the Confederate States . They seized federal property, including nearly all U.S. Army forts, within their borders. Lincoln was determined to hold the forts remaining under U.S. control when he took office, especially Fort Sumter in
2795-479: A narrow front. The Confederates were temporarily able to counter this attack with their inferior numbers by firing fierce volleys from behind the stone wall. Jackson, finally realizing the strength of the force opposing him, rushed reinforcements to his left, but by the time they arrived around 6 p.m., Garnett's Stonewall Brigade had run out of ammunition and he pulled them back, leaving Fulkerson's right flank exposed. Jackson tried in vain to rally his troops to hold, but
3010-684: A partisan officer, I never knew his superior." Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army , also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army , was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting against the United States forces to win the independence of the Southern states and uphold and expand
3225-580: A place they had neglected to picket, capturing 60 of the horsemen, while the remainder of Ashby's command fought their way back to Jackson's position on Rude's Hill. Jackson assumed that Banks had been reinforced, so he abandoned his position and marched quickly up the Valley to Harrisonburg on April 18. On April 19, his men marched 20 miles east out of the Shenandoah valley to Swift Run Gap . Banks occupied New Market and crossed Massanutten Mountain to seize
3440-460: A preemptive assault on the hill and Schenck, his superior officer, approved. At about 4:30 p.m., 2,300 Federal troops crossed the river and assaulted Sitlington Hill. Their initial assault almost broke Johnson's right, but Jackson sent up Taliaferro's infantry and repulsed the Federals. The next attack was at the vulnerable center of the Confederate line, where the 12th Georgia Infantry occupied
3655-488: A result, instead of a figurative hammer (Shields) striking at Jackson on an anvil (Frémont), all Lincoln could hope for would be a pincer movement catching Jackson at Strasburg, which would require intricate timing to succeed. Jackson received word of Shields's return march on May 26, but he had been urged by Robert E. Lee to threaten the line of the Potomac. So while the bulk of his army camped near Charles Town , he ordered
3870-417: A salient that was subjected to fire from both sides. The Georgians, the only non-Virginians on the Confederate side, proudly and defiantly refused to withdraw to a more defensible position and took heavy casualties as they stood and fired, silhouetted against the bright sky as easy targets at the crest of the hill. One Georgia private exclaimed, "We did not come all this way to Virginia to run before Yankees." By
4085-493: A soldier, and his rejection of a Southern identity as a professional author. Because of the destruction of any central repository of records in the capital at Richmond in 1865 and the comparatively poor record-keeping of the time, there can be no definitive number that represents the strength of the Confederate States Army. Estimates range from 500,000 to 2,000,000 soldiers who were involved at any time during
4300-589: A squad or platoon, the smallest infantry maneuver unit in the Army was a company of 100 soldiers. Ten companies were organized into an infantry regiment, which theoretically had 1,000 men. In reality, as disease, desertions and casualties took their toll, and the common practice of sending replacements to form new regiments took hold, most regiments were greatly reduced in strength. By the mid-war, most regiments averaged 300–400 men, with Confederate units slightly smaller on average than their U.S. counterparts. For example, at
4515-428: A stand at Cedarville. Although the cavalrymen were outnumbered three to one, they charged the Union line, which broke but reformed. A second charge routed the Union detachment. The results of the battle were lopsided. Union casualties were 773, of which 691 were captured. Confederate losses were 36 killed and wounded. Jackson's men captured about $ 300,000 of Federal supplies; Banks soon became known as "Commissary Banks" to
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#17327725075644730-568: A strategic victory for the Confederacy. After the battle, Jackson arrested Brig. Gen. Richard B. Garnett for retreating from the battlefield before permission was received. He was replaced by Brig. Gen. Charles S. Winder . Garnett suffered from the humiliation of his court-martial for over a year, until he was finally killed in Pickett's Charge at the Battle of Gettysburg . At first light
4945-435: A strong charge against Bower's Hill, moving up the steep slope and over a stone wall. At the same time, Ewell's men were outflanking the extreme left of the Union line. The Union lines broke and the soldiers retreated through the streets of town. Jackson later wrote that Banks's troops "preserved their organization remarkably well" through the town. They did so under unusual pressure, as numerous civilians—primarily women—fired at
5160-428: A strong counterattack, and as the Union troops began withdrawing under fire, many panicked and the retreat turned into a rout. McDowell's men frantically ran without order in the direction of Washington, D.C. Both armies were sobered by the fierce fighting and the many casualties and realized that the war was going to be much longer and bloodier than either had anticipated. The First Battle of Bull Run highlighted many of
5375-447: A strong defensive position on Rude's Hill, corresponded with Ewell to develop a strategy for the campaign. During this period, Jackson also faced difficulty within his own command. He arrested Garnett and had a nasty confrontation with Turner Ashby in which Jackson displayed his displeasure at Ashby's performance by stripping him of 10 of his 21 cavalry companies and reassigning them to Charles S. Winder, Garnett's replacement in command of
5590-466: A swift attack must be done while the rebel forces had still not consolidated their position, so he ordered his artillery to bombard the rebel positions atop Bull Pasture Mountain. Soon afterwards, at 10:00 AM, Schenck's column arrived and reinforced Milroy. As Milroy withdrew north of McDowell On May 8, Jackson arrived at McDowell , a village in Highland County , to find that Allegheny Johnson
5805-604: A volunteer regiment during the Mexican–American War (1846-1848). He had also been a United States senator from Mississippi and served as U.S. Secretary of War under 14th President Franklin Pierce . On March 1, 1861, on behalf of the new Confederate States government, Davis assumed control of the military situation at Charleston Harbor in Charleston, South Carolina , where South Carolina state militia had besieged
6020-425: Is a ready explanation for this apparent paradox. Emancipation was a salient issue for Union soldiers because it was controversial. Slavery was less salient for most Confederate soldiers because it was not controversial. They took slavery for granted as one of the Southern 'rights' and institutions for which they fought, and did not feel compelled to discuss it. Continuing, retired Professor McPherson also stated that of
6235-569: Is believed that the force with which you move will be sufficient to accomplish the object alone. Lincoln's plan was to spring a trap on Jackson using three armies. Frémont's movement to Harrisonburg would place him on Jackson's supply line. Banks would recross the Potomac and pursue Jackson if he moved up the Valley. The detachment from McDowell's corps would move to Front Royal and be positioned to attack and pursue Jackson's column as it passed by, and then to crush Jackson's army against Frémont's position at Harrisonburg. Unfortunately for Lincoln, his plan
6450-648: Is lost." In addition to Jackson's campaign in 1862, the Valley was subjected to conflict for virtually the entire war, most notably in the Valley campaigns of 1864 . Stonewall Jackson's command, the Valley District of the Department of Northern Virginia , expanded significantly during the campaign as reinforcements were added, starting with a force of a mere 5,000 effectives and reaching an eventual peak of 17,000 men. It remained, however, greatly outnumbered by
6665-497: Is said to have replied, "Then, Sir, we will give them the bayonet." Bee is then said to have exhorted his own troops to re-form by shouting, "There is Jackson standing like a stone wall. Let us determine to die here, and we will conquer. Rally behind the Virginians." This exclamation is often held to be the source for Jackson's (and his brigade's ) nickname, "Stonewall". Bee was shot through the stomach shortly afterwards and died
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6880-854: Is true, but they are green also; you are all green alike." Against his better judgment, McDowell commenced campaigning. During the previous year, U.S. Army captain Thomas Jordan set up a pro-Southern spy network in Washington, D.C. , recruiting Rose O'Neal Greenhow , a prominent socialite with a wide range of contacts. He provided her with a code for messages. After he left to join the Confederate Army, he gave her control of his network but continued to receive reports from her. On July 9 and 16, Greenhow passed secret messages to Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard containing critical information regarding military movements for what would be
7095-463: The 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 -hour delay after the Union victory on Matthews' Hill, which allowed the Confederates to bring up reinforcements and establish a defensive position on Henry Hill. On Henry Hill, Beauregard had also limited his control to the regimental level, generally allowing the battle to continue on its own and only reacting to Union moves. Johnston's decision to transport his infantry to
7310-576: The Army of Tennessee and various other units under General Joseph E. Johnston , surrendered to the U.S. on April 9, 1865 (officially April 12), and April 18, 1865 (officially April 26). Other Confederate forces further south and west surrendered between April 16, 1865, and June 28, 1865. By the end of the war, more than 100,000 Confederate soldiers had deserted , and some estimates put the number as high as one-third of all Confederate soldiers. The Confederacy's government effectively dissolved when it evacuated
7525-661: The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal and the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad . In the Romney Expedition of early January 1862, Jackson fought inconclusively with two small Union posts at Hancock, Maryland , and Bath . In late February, Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan ordered Banks, reinforced by Brig. Gen. John Sedgwick , across the Potomac to protect the canal and railroad from Ashby. Banks moved south against Winchester in conjunction with Shields's division approaching from
7740-467: The Peninsula campaign against Richmond. Following Kernstown, Jackson retreated to form a line at Stony Creek south of Woodstock, making his headquarters at Narrow Passage on Stony Creek. It was there he summoned a local cartographer, Jedediah Hotchkiss , who recommended he withdraw from the indefensible Stony Creek to Rude's Hill , a strategic small promontory but a commanding defensive position astride
7955-805: The Potomac River in his first invasion of the North in the Antietam campaign in Maryland in September 1862. The Confederate States Army did not have a formal overall military commander, or general in chief, until late in the war. The Confederate President, Jefferson Davis , himself a former U.S. Army officer and U.S. Secretary of War , served as commander-in-chief and provided the overall strategic direction for Confederate land and naval forces in both eastern and western theaters. The following men had varying degrees of control: The lack of centralized control
8170-469: The Seven Days Battles outside Richmond. His audacious campaign elevated him to the position of the most famous general in the Confederacy (until this reputation was later supplanted by Lee) and has been studied ever since by military organizations around the world. In the spring of 1862 "Southern morale... was at its nadir" and "prospects for the Confederacy's survival seemed bleak." Following
8385-545: The Union offensive against Richmond . Jackson suffered an initial tactical defeat (his second defeat of the war) at the First Battle of Kernstown (March 23, 1862) against Col. Nathan Kimball (part of Union Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks 's army), but it proved to be a strategic Confederate victory because President Abraham Lincoln reinforced the Union's Valley forces with troops that had originally been designated for
8600-558: The United States Army (established 1775 / 1789). It was to consist of a large provisional force to exist only in time of war and a small permanent regular army. The provisional, volunteer army was established by an act of the Provisional Confederate Congress passed on February 28, 1861, one week before the act which established the permanent regular army organization, passed on March 6. Although
8815-544: The macadamized Valley Pike), and Shields would not leave Front Royal until Ord's division arrived. Jackson reached Strasburg before either of the Union armies and the only source of concern was that the Stonewall Brigade had been delayed at Harpers Ferry, but it caught up with the rest of Jackson's army after noon on June 1. On June 2, Union forces pursued Jackson—McDowell up the Luray Valley and Frémont up
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9030-436: The "Maryland Line"). The cavalry was commanded during the period by Col. Thomas S. Flournoy , Brig. Gen. George H. Steuart, Brig. Gen. Turner Ashby, and Col. Thomas T. Munford . Union forces varied considerably during the campaign as armies arrived and withdrew from the Valley. The forces were generally from three independent commands, an arrangement which reduced the effectiveness of the Union response to Jackson. Initially,
9245-502: The "flimsy and abstract idea that a negro is equal to an Anglo American". One Louisianan artilleryman stated, "I never want to see the day when a negro is put on an equality with a white person. There is too many free niggers ... now to suit me, let alone having four millions." A North Carolinian soldier stated, "[A] white man is better than a nigger." Decades later in 1894 , Virginian and former famous Confederate cavalry leader, John S. Mosby (1833-1916), reflecting on his role in
9460-466: The "upper Valley" referred to the southwestern end, which had a generally higher elevation than the lower Valley to the northeast. Moving "up the Valley" meant traveling southwest, for instance. Between the North and South Forks of the Shenandoah River, Massanutten Mountain soared 2,900 feet and separated the Valley into two halves for about 50 miles, from Strasburg to Harrisonburg . During
9675-507: The 19th century, there was but a single road that crossed over the mountain, from New Market to Luray. The Valley offered two strategic advantages to the Confederates. First, a Northern army entering Virginia could be subjected to Confederate flanking attacks pouring through the many wind gaps across the Blue Ridge. Second, the Valley offered a protected avenue that allowed Confederate armies to head north into Pennsylvania unimpeded; this
9890-401: The 33rd Virginia followed by Stuart's cavalry attack against the flank of the 11th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment ( Ellsworth 's Fire Zouaves ), which was supporting the battery, killed many of the gunners and scattered the infantry. Capitalizing on this success, Jackson ordered two regiments to charge Ricketts's guns and they were captured as well. As additional Federal infantry engaged,
10105-407: The 79th New York in revenge for the death of his nephew earlier in the day, although he had in fact been killed by soldiers of the 69th New York. Jackson posted his five regiments on the reverse slope of the hill, where they were shielded from direct fire, and was able to assemble 13 guns for the defensive line, which he posted on the crest of the hill; as the guns fired, their recoil moved them down
10320-809: The American Civil War were volunteers, both sides by 1862 resorted to conscription as a means to supplement the volunteer soldiers. Although exact records are unavailable, estimates of the percentage of Confederate Army soldiers who were drafted are about double the 6 percent of Union Army soldiers who were drafted. According to the National Park Service, "Soldier demographics for the Confederate Army are not available due to incomplete and destroyed enlistment records." Their estimates of Confederate military personnel deaths are about 94,000 killed in battle, 164,000 deaths from disease, and between 25,976 deaths in Union prison camps. One estimate of
10535-494: The American Civil War's soldiers, noted Princeton University war historian and author James M. McPherson (born 1936), contrasts the views of Confederate soldiers regarding slavery with those of the colonial American revolutionaries of the earlier 18th century . He stated that while the American rebel colonists of the 1770s saw an incongruity between owning slaves on the one hand, and proclaiming to be fighting for liberty on
10750-399: The Army of Northeastern Virginia, 35,000 men arranged in five divisions. Under public and political pressure to begin offensive operations, McDowell was given very little time to train the newly inducted troops. Units were instructed in the maneuvering of regiments, but they received little or no training at the brigade or division level. He was reassured by President Lincoln, "You are green, it
10965-467: The Blue Ridge, telling his superiors that "such [an] order would electrify our force." Instead, Lincoln decided to detach Shield's division and transfer it to Maj. Gen. Irvin McDowell at Fredericksburg , leaving Banks in the Valley with only a single division. Banks was then instructed to retreat down the valley and assume a defensive position at Strasburg. By this time, McClellan's Peninsula campaign
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#173277250756411180-554: The Bull Run river with his left guarding a stone bridge, approximately 25 miles (40 km) from the United States capital. McDowell planned to attack this numerically inferior enemy army. Union Maj. Gen. Robert Patterson 's 18,000 men engaged Johnston's force (the Army of the Shenandoah at 8,884 effectives, augmented by Maj. Gen. Theophilus H. Holmes 's brigade of 1,465 ) in the Shenandoah Valley , preventing them from reinforcing Beauregard. After two days of marching slowly in
11395-679: The Civil War, the Shenandoah Valley was one of the most strategic geographic features of Virginia. The watershed of the Shenandoah River passed between the Blue Ridge Mountains on the east and the Allegheny Mountains to the west, extending 140 miles southwest from the Potomac River at Shepherdstown and Harpers Ferry , at an average width of 25 miles. By the conventions of local residents,
11610-534: The Confederacy passed the first conscription law in either Confederate or Union history, the Conscription Act, which made all able bodied white men between the ages of 18 and 35 liable for a three-year term of service in the Provisional Army. It also extended the terms of enlistment for all one-year soldiers to three years. Men employed in certain occupations considered to be most valuable for
11825-821: The Confederacy: Control and operation of the Confederate army were administered by the Confederate States War Department , which was established by the Confederate Provisional Congress in an act on February 21, 1861. The Confederate Congress gave control over military operations, and authority for mustering state forces and volunteers to the President of the Confederate States of America on February 28, 1861, and March 6, 1861. On March 8,
12040-589: The Confederate Congress passed a law that authorized President Davis to issue proclamations to call up no more than 100,000 men. The C.S. War Department asked for 8,000 volunteers on March 9, 20,000 on April 8, and 49,000 on and after April 16. Davis proposed an army of 100,000 soldiers in his message to Congress on April 29. On August 8, 1861, the Confederacy called for 400,000 volunteers to serve for one or three years. Eight months later in April 1862,
12255-572: The Confederate left (northwest) flank instead. He planned to attack with Brig. Gen. Daniel Tyler 's division at the Stone Bridge on the Warrenton Turnpike and send the divisions of Brig. Gens. David Hunter and Samuel P. Heintzelman over Sudley Springs Ford. From here, these divisions could outflank the Confederate line and march into the Confederate rear. The brigade of Col. Israel B. Richardson (Tyler's Division) would harass
12470-501: The Confederate right (southeast) flank. Tyler was drawn into a skirmish at Blackburn's Ford over Bull Run and made no headway. Also on the morning of 18 July Johnston had received a telegram suggesting he go to Beauregard's assistance if possible. Johnston marched out of Winchester about noon, while Stuart's cavalry screened the movement from Patterson. Patterson was completely deceived. One hour after Johnston's departure Patterson telegraphed Washington, "I have succeeded, in accordance with
12685-435: The Confederate right, and Brig. Gen. Edmund Kirby Smith 's (commanded by Col. Arnold Elzey after Smith was wounded), which had just arrived from the Shenandoah Valley, moved forward and crushed Howard's brigade. Beauregard ordered his entire line forward, and the Union troops began to panic in retreat. At 5 p.m. everywhere McDowell's army was disintegrating. Thousands, in large and small groups or as individuals, began to leave
12900-558: The Confederate sample. Indeed, while about one-third of all Confederate soldiers belonged to slaveholding families, slightly more than two-thirds of the sample whose slaveholding status is known did so. In some cases, Confederate men were motivated to join the army in response to the United States' actions regarding its opposition to slavery. After the U.S. President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1862 - 1863 , some Confederate soldiers welcomed
13115-467: The Confederate smoothbores and the predominantly rifled pieces on the Union side were not effective weapons at such close ranges, with many shots fired over the head of their targets. One of the casualties of the artillery fire was Judith Carter Henry, an 85-year-old widow and invalid, who was unable to leave her bedroom in the Henry House. As Ricketts began receiving rifle fire, he concluded that it
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#173277250756413330-480: The Confederates because of the many provisions they won from him during the campaign. Banks initially resisted the advice of his staff to withdraw, assuming the events at Front Royal were merely a diversion. As he came to realize that his position had been turned, at about 3 a.m. he ordered his sick and wounded to be sent from Strasburg to Winchester and his infantry began to march midmorning on May 24. The most significant after effect of Banks's minor loss at Front Royal
13545-516: The Confederates quickly pushed the small Federal detachment out of town. Kenly and his men made a stand on a hill just north of town and Jackson prepared to charge them with the Marylanders in the center and the Louisianians against their left flank. Before the attack could commence, Kenly saw Confederate cavalry approaching the bridges that he needed for his escape route and he immediately ordered his men to abandon their position. They first crossed
13760-482: The Confederates were pushed back and they reformed and the guns changed hands several times. The capture of the Union guns turned the tide of battle. Although McDowell had brought 15 regiments into the fight on the hill, outnumbering the Confederates two to one, no more than two were ever engaged simultaneously. Jackson continued to press his attacks, telling soldiers of the 4th Virginia Infantry , "Reserve your fire until they come within 50 yards! Then fire and give them
13975-541: The Confederates' right flank to the south, cutting the railroad to Richmond and threatening the rear of the Confederate army. He assumed that the Confederates would be forced to abandon Manassas Junction and fall back to the Rappahannock River , the next defensible line in Virginia, which would relieve some of the pressure on the U.S. capital. McDowell had hoped to have his army at Centreville by 17 July, but
14190-638: The Confederates, the administration searched for a more suitable field commander. Secretary of the Treasury Salmon P. Chase championed fellow Ohioan, 42-year-old Maj. Irvin McDowell . Although McDowell was a West Point graduate, his command experience was limited. In fact, he had spent most of his career engaged in various staff duties in the Adjutant General's Office. While stationed in Washington he had become acquainted with Chase,
14405-667: The Confederates, who had been planning to attack the Union left flank, found themselves at an initial disadvantage. Confederate reinforcements under Brigadier General Joseph E. Johnston arrived from the Shenandoah Valley by railroad, and the course of the battle quickly changed. A brigade of Virginians under a relatively unknown brigadier general from the Virginia Military Institute , Thomas J. Jackson , stood its ground, which resulted in Jackson receiving his famous nickname, "Stonewall". The Confederates launched
14620-534: The Episcopalians, Methodists, and Lutherans. One result was wave after wave of religious revivals in the Army, religion playing a major part in the lives of Confederate soldiers. Some men with a weak religious affiliation became committed Christians, and saw their military service in terms of satisfying God's wishes. Religion strengthened the soldiers' loyalty to their comrades and the Confederacy. Military historian Samuel J. Watson argues that Christian faith
14835-567: The Federal army under Banks might strike at Johnston through passes in the Blue Ridge Mountains. By March 12, 1862, Banks occupied Winchester just after Jackson had withdrawn from the town, marching at a leisurely pace 42 miles up the Valley Pike to Mount Jackson . On March 21, Jackson received word that Banks was splitting his force, with two divisions (under Brig. Gens. John Sedgwick and Alpheus S. Williams ) returning to
15050-459: The Federals had indeed begun a retreat down the Valley Pike, Jackson began directing forces to Middletown. Although they had to contend with Union cavalry (five companies of the 1st Maine and two companies of the 1st Vermont) and were thus delayed en route, they reached a rise outside of Middletown at about 3 p.m. and began artillery bombardments of the Union column. The chaos that this produced
15265-537: The First Battle of Bull Run, including the plans of Union general McDowell. On July 16, McDowell departed Washington with the largest field army yet gathered on the North American continent, about 35,000 men (28,452 effectives). McDowell's plan was to move westward in three columns and make a diversionary attack on the Confederate line at Bull Run with two columns, while the third column moved around
15480-694: The Front Royal area until he could rule out the Blue Ridge escape possibility. He sent scouts from Turner Ashby's cavalry on the Strasburg–Front Royal Road and two regiments of cavalry from Ewell's division, commanded by Brig. Gen. George H. Steuart , to Newtown, hoping to intercept the vanguard of Banks's column. At the same time, he ordered Ewell to take the bulk of his division on the road to Winchester, but not to get too far away in case he had to be recalled. The remainder of Jackson's army moved north to Cedarville. Receiving word from Steuart that
15695-422: The Luray Valley. Their speed of forced marching was typical of the campaign and earned his infantrymen the nickname of "Jackson's foot cavalry". He sent Ashby's cavalry directly north to make Banks think that he was going to attack Strasburg, where Banks began to be concerned that his 4,476 infantry, 1,600 cavalry, and 16 artillery pieces might be insufficient to withstand Jackson's 16,000 men. However, Jackson's plan
15910-662: The Mountain Department, west of the Valley. In early May, part of Frémont's command consisting of Brig. Gen. Robert C. Schenck 's brigade and Brig. Gen. Robert H. Milroy 's brigade faced Jackson at the Battle of McDowell . At the end of May, Fremont entered the Valley with a division under Brig. Gen. Louis Blenker , consisting of brigades of Brig. Gen. Julius H. Stahel , Col. John A. Koltes , and Brig. Gen. Henry Bohlen , as well as brigades under Col. Gustave P. Cluseret , Brig. Gen. Robert H. Milroy, Brig. Gen. Robert C. Schenck, and Brig. Gen. George D. Bayard . Also at
16125-568: The Potomac Army of Northeastern Virginia: Patterson's Command : The First Battle of Bull Run , also called the Battle of First Manassas by Confederate forces, was the first major battle of the American Civil War . The battle was fought on July 21, 1861, in Prince William County, Virginia , just north of what is now the city of Manassas and about thirty miles west-southwest of Washington, D.C. The Union Army
16340-471: The Shenandoah (C.S.A.), for June 30, 1861. Aggregate present for duty. On the morning of July 21, McDowell sent the divisions of Hunter and Heintzelman (about 12,000 men) from Centreville at 2:30 a.m., marching southwest on the Warrenton Turnpike and then turning northwest toward Sudley Springs to get around the Confederates' left. Tyler's division (about 8,000) marched directly toward
16555-493: The Shenandoah River, delaying the Union pursuit and keeping Shields's and Frémont's forces separated. When contact was reestablished on June 6, Ashby was killed on Chestnut Ridge near Harrisonburg in a skirmish with Frémont's cavalry, commanded by Brig. Gen. George D. Bayard . This was a significant loss for the Confederacy since Ashby (the "Black Knight") was one of its most promising cavalry generals (Ashby having been promoted to brigadier general on June 3). Jackson later wrote, "As
16770-545: The Shenandoah Valley. Abstract from the returns of the Department of Northeastern Virginia, commanded by Brigadier-General McDowell, U.S.A., for July 16 and 17, 1861. Abstract from return of the Department of Pennsylvania, commanded by Major-General Patterson, June 28, 1861. Abstract front field return, First Corps (Army of the Potomac), July 21, 1861. [Dated September 25, 1861.] Abstract from monthly report of Brig. Gen. Joseph E. Johnston's division, or Army of
16985-640: The South Fork bridges and then the wooden Pike Bridge over the North Fork, which they set afire behind them. Taylor's Brigade raced in pursuit and Jackson ordered them to cross the burning bridge. As he saw the Federals escaping, Jackson was frustrated that he had no artillery to fire at them. His guns were delayed on the Gooney Manor Road detour route the infantry had taken and Ashby's cavalry had failed to deliver Jackson's orders for them to take
17200-504: The Stone Bridge. The inexperienced units immediately developed logistical problems. Tyler's division blocked the advance of the main flanking column on the turnpike. The later units found the approach roads to Sudley Springs were inadequate, little more than a cart path in some places, and did not begin fording Bull Run until 9:30 a.m. Tyler's men reached the Stone Bridge around 6 a.m. At 5:15 a.m., Richardson's brigade fired
17415-411: The Stonewall Brigade to demonstrate against Harpers Ferry on May 29–30. On May 30, Shields recaptured Front Royal and Jackson began moving his army back to Winchester. Lincoln's plan continued to unravel as Banks declared his army was too shaken to move in pursuit (and would remain north of the Potomac until June 10), Frémont moved slowly on poor roads (in contrast to Jackson, whose men had the advantage of
17630-430: The Stonewall Brigade. Winder mediated between the two officers and the stubborn Jackson uncharacteristically backed down, restoring Ashby's command. More importantly, Jackson received an April 21 letter from Gen. Robert E. Lee , military adviser to President Jefferson Davis , requesting that he and Ewell attack Banks to reduce the threat against Richmond that was being posed by McDowell at Fredericksburg. Jackson's plan
17845-471: The Union artillery position on Pritchard Hill. The lead brigade under Fulkerson was repulsed, so Jackson decided to move around the Union right flank, about 2 miles west on Sandy Ridge, which appeared to be unoccupied. Kimball countered the maneuver by moving his brigade under Col. Erastus B. Tyler to the west, but Fulkerson's men reached a stone wall facing a clearing on the ridge before the Union men could. Around 4 p.m, Tyler attacked Fulkerson and Garnett on
18060-407: The Union. They felt that they had no choice but to help defend their homes. President Abraham Lincoln was exasperated to hear of such men who professed to love their country but were willing to fight against it. As in the U.S. Army , the Confederate Army's soldiers were organized by military specialty. The combat arms included infantry, cavalry, and artillery. Although fewer soldiers might comprise
18275-493: The Valley Turnpike south of Mt. Jackson. It was at Rude's Hill, which was Jackson's headquarters from April 2–17, that Jackson reorganized his command. Jackson had instructed Hotchkiss to "make me a map of the Valley, from Harper's Ferry to Lexington, showing all the points of offence and defence [sic] in those places." The Shenandoah Valley had never been comprehensively mapped before, and Hotchkiss' maps and knowledge of
18490-551: The Valley caused consternation in Washington because of the possibility that the audacious Jackson might continue marching north and threaten the capital. President Lincoln, who in the absence of a general in chief was exerting day to day strategic control over his armies in the field, took aggressive action in response. Not yielding to panic and drawing troops in for the immediate defense of the capital, he planned an elaborate offensive. He ordered Frémont to march from Franklin to Harrisonburg to engage Jackson and Ewell, to "operate against
18705-742: The Valley once again to confront Banks. Concealing his movement in the Luray Valley , Jackson joined forces with Maj. Gen. Richard S. Ewell and captured the Federal garrison at Front Royal on May 23, causing Banks to retreat to the north. On May 25, in the First Battle of Winchester , Jackson defeated Banks and pursued him until the Union Army crossed the Potomac River into Maryland . Bringing in Union reinforcements from eastern Virginia, Brig. Gen. James Shields recaptured Front Royal and planned to link up with Frémont in Strasburg . Jackson
18920-456: The Valley was the responsibility of Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks . In March 1862, at the time of the Battle of Kernstown , he commanded the V Corps of the Army of the Potomac ; and on April 4, he assumed command of the Department of the Shenandoah. His force initially consisted of two divisions under Brig. Gens. James Shields and Alpheus S. Williams , with an independent brigade under Brig. Gen. John W. Geary . At Kernstown, Shields' division
19135-462: The Valley", consisting of the brigades of Brig. Gen. Charles S. Winder , Col. John A. Campbell , and Brig. Gen. William B. Taliaferro ; the Army of the Northwest , commanded by Brig. Gen. Edward "Allegheny" Johnson , consisted of the brigades of Cols. Zephaniah T. Conner and W.C. Scott. In late May and June, for the battles starting at Front Royal , Jackson commanded two infantry divisions and
19350-489: The Valley, which it appeared they were now doing. Jackson turned his men around and, in one of the more grueling forced marches of the war, moved northeast 25 miles on March 22 and another 15 to Kernstown on the morning of March 23. Ashby's cavalry skirmished with the Federals on March 22, during which engagement Shields was wounded with a broken arm from an artillery shell fragment. Despite his injury, Shields sent part of his division south of Winchester and one brigade marching to
19565-474: The army, such as the construction of fortifications and defenses or driving wagons. Since these figures include estimates of the total number of soldiers who served at any time during the war, they do not represent the size of the army at any given date. These numbers also do not include sailors / marines who served in the Confederate States Navy . Although most of the soldiers who fought in
19780-512: The attack, Ewell, at Union Mills Ford, was simply ordered to "hold ... in readiness to advance at a moment's notice". Brig. Gen. D.R. Jones was supposed to attack in support of Ewell, but found himself moving forward alone. Holmes was also supposed to support, but received no orders at all. All that stood in the path of the 20,000 Union soldiers converging on the Confederate left flank were Col. Nathan "Shanks" Evans and his reduced brigade of 1,100 men. Evans had moved some of his men to intercept
19995-647: The battle with such fanfare. Expecting an easy Union victory, the wealthy elite of nearby Washington, including congressmen and their families, had come to picnic and watch the battle. When the Union army was driven back in a running disorder, the roads back to Washington were blocked by panicked civilians attempting to flee in their carriages. The pell-mell retreat became known in the Southern press as "The Great Skedaddle". Since their combined army had been left highly disorganized as well, Beauregard and Johnston did not fully press their advantage, despite urging from Confederate President Jefferson Davis , who had arrived on
20210-429: The battlefield and head for Centreville in a rout. McDowell rode around the field trying to rally regiments and groups of soldiers, but most had had enough. Unable to stop the mass exodus, McDowell gave orders for Porter's regular infantry battalion, near the intersection of the turnpike and Manassas-Sudley Road, to act as a rear guard as his army withdrew. The unit briefly held the crossroads, then retreated eastward with
20425-410: The battlefield by rail played a major role in the Confederate victory. Although the trains were slow and a lack of sufficient cars did not allow the transport of large numbers of troops at one time, almost all of his army arrived in time to participate in the battle. After reaching Manassas Junction, Johnston had relinquished command of the battlefield to Beauregard, but his forwarding of reinforcements to
20640-428: The battlefield to see the Union soldiers retreating. An attempt by Johnston to intercept the Union troops from his right flank, using the brigades of Brig. Gens. Milledge L. Bonham and James Longstreet , was a failure. The two commanders squabbled with each other and when Bonham's men received some artillery fire from the Union rear guard, and found that Richardson's brigade blocked the road to Centreville, he called off
20855-437: The battlefield, he had expended most of his energy maneuvering nearby regiments and brigades, instead of controlling and coordinating the movements of his army as a whole. Other factors contributed to McDowell's defeat: Patterson's failure to hold Johnston in the valley; McDowell's two-day delay at Centreville; allowing Tyler's division to lead the march on 21 July, thus delaying the flanking divisions of Hunter and Heintzelman; and
21070-529: The bayonet! And when you charge, yell like furies!" For the first time, Union troops heard the disturbing sound of the Rebel yell . At about 4 p.m., the last Union troops were pushed off Henry House Hill by a charge of two regiments from Col. Philip St. George Cocke 's brigade. To the west, Chinn Ridge had been occupied by Col. Oliver Otis Howard 's brigade from Heintzelman's division. But at 4 p.m., two Confederate brigades-Col. Jubal Early 's, which had moved from
21285-465: The bridges across the South Fork in the Luray Valley, once again besting Ashby's cavalry, who failed to destroy the bridges in time. Banks now controlled the valley as far south as Harrisonburg. Though Banks was aware of Jackson's location, he misinterpreted Jackson's intent, thinking that Jackson was heading east of the Blue Ridge to aid Richmond. Without clear direction from Washington as to his next objective, Banks proposed his force also be sent east of
21500-454: The city harbor began bombarding bombarding Fort Sumter on April 12–13, 1861 and forced its capitulation on April 14. The remaining loyal United States in the North, outraged by the Confederacy's attack, demanded war. It rallied behind new 16th President Lincoln's call on April 15 for all the loyal states to send their state militia units avolunteer troops to reinforce and protect the national federal capital of Washington, D.C. , to recapture
21715-585: The confluence of the South and North Forks and that they would have to cross two bridges in order to escape from his pending attack. The center of Jackson's line of battle were the ferocious Louisiana Tigers battalion (150 men, part of Brig. Gen. Richard Taylor's brigade in Ewell's division), commanded by Col. Roberdeau Wheat , and the 1st Maryland Infantry, the latter bitter enemies of Kenly's Union 1st Maryland Infantry. The first shots were fired around 2 p.m. and
21930-477: The crop in the entire state and the Valley was also rich in livestock—that was used to provision Virginia's armies and the Confederate capital of Richmond. If the Federals could reach Staunton in the upper Valley, they would threaten the vital Virginia and Tennessee Railroad , which ran from Richmond to the Mississippi River . Stonewall Jackson wrote to a staff member, "If this Valley is lost, Virginia
22145-415: The day after Kernstown, Union forces pursued Jackson and drove Ashby's cavalry in a panic. However, Banks called off the pursuit while supply problems were addressed. For the next three days the Union forces advanced slowly while Jackson retreated to Mount Jackson. It was there that he directed Capt. Jedediah Hotchkiss , "I want you to make me a map of the Valley, from Harpers Ferry to Lexington , showing all
22360-559: The depredations of roving bands of marauders. Many soldiers went home temporarily (A.W.O.L. - " Absent Without Official Leave ") and quietly returned when their family problems had been resolved. By September 1864, however, President Davis publicly admitted that two-thirds of the soldiers were absent, "most of them without leave". The problem escalated rapidly after that, and fewer and fewer men returned. Soldiers who were fighting in defense of their homes realized that they had to desert to fulfill that duty. Historian Mark Weitz argues that
22575-483: The direct route after the battle started. By God, sir, I will not retreat. We have more to fear from the opinions of our friends than the bayonets of our enemies. Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks , speaking to Col. George H. Gordon , May 24, 1862 A detachment of 250 Confederate cavalry under Col. Thomas S. Flournoy of the 6th Virginia Cavalry arrived at that moment and Jackson set them off in pursuit of Kenly. The retreating Union troops were forced to halt and make
22790-521: The direct threat from Tyler at the bridge, but he began to suspect that the weak attacks from the Union brigade of Brig. Gen. Robert C. Schenck were merely feints. He was informed of the main Union flanking movement through Sudley Springs by Captain Edward Porter Alexander , Beauregard's signal officer, observing from 8 miles (13 km) southwest on Signal Hill. In the first use of wig-wag semaphore signaling in combat, Alexander sent
23005-651: The direction of Romney. Jackson's command was operating as the left wing of Gen. Joseph E. Johnston 's army, and when Johnston withdrew from Manassas to Culpeper in March, Jackson's position at Winchester was isolated. He began withdrawing "up" the Valley (to the higher elevations at the southwest end of the Valley) to cover the flank of Gen. Joseph E. Johnston 's army, withdrawing from the Centreville – Manassas area to protect Richmond. Without this protective movement,
23220-438: The eastern and Gulf coasts. The press ridiculed what they dubbed as Scott's " Anaconda Plan ". Instead, many believed the capture of the Confederate capital at Richmond, only 100 miles (160 km) south of Washington, would quickly end the war. By July 1861 many of the thousands of Union volunteers were camped in and around Washington. Since General Scott was seventy-five years old and physically unable to lead this force against
23435-455: The end of May, McDowell was ordered to send troops to the Valley. Thus Shields returned to the Valley with his division consisting of the brigades of Brig. Gen. Nathan Kimball, Brig. Gen. Orris S. Ferry , Brig. Gen. Erastus B. Tyler, and Col. Samuel S. Carroll . On November 4, 1861, Jackson accepted command of the Valley District , with his headquarters at Winchester . Jackson, recently a professor at Virginia Military Institute and suddenly
23650-453: The end of the day the 540 Georgians suffered 180 casualties, losses three times greater than any other regiment on the field. Johnson was wounded and Taliaferro assumed command of the battle while Jackson brought up additional reinforcements. The fighting continued until about 10 p.m., when the Union troops withdrew. Milroy and Schenck marched their men north from McDowell beginning at 12:30 a.m. on May 9. Jackson attempted to pursue, but by
23865-596: The enemy at Blackburn's Ford, preventing them from thwarting the main attack. Patterson would tie down Johnston in the Shenandoah Valley so that reinforcements could not reach the area. Although McDowell had arrived at a theoretically sound plan, it had a number of flaws: it was one that required synchronized execution of troop movements and attacks, skills that had not been developed in the nascent army; it relied on actions by Patterson that he had already failed to take; finally, McDowell had delayed long enough that Johnston's Valley force, which had trained under Stonewall Jackson ,
24080-561: The enemy in such a way as to relieve Banks." He also sent orders to McDowell at Fredericksburg: You are instructed to lay aside for the present the movement on Richmond to put twenty thousand men in motion at once for the Shenandoah, moving on the line or in advance of the Manassas Gap Railroad. Your object will be to capture the forces of Jackson and Ewell, either in cooperation with General Frémont or in case want of supplies or of transportation interferes with his movement, it
24295-451: The entire Confederate force was forced into a general retreat. Kimball organized no effective pursuit. Union casualties were 590 (118 killed, 450 wounded, 22 captured or missing), Confederate 718 (80 killed, 375 wounded, 263 captured or missing). Despite the Union victory, President Lincoln was disturbed by Jackson's audacity and his potential threat to Washington. He sent Banks back to the Valley along with Alpheus Williams's division. He also
24510-458: The extent the word " battalion " was used to describe a military unit, it referred to a multi-company task force of a regiment or a near-regimental size unit. Throughout the war, the Confederacy raised the equivalent of 1,010 regiments in all branches, including militias, versus 2,050 regiments for the U.S. Army. Four regiments usually formed a brigade , although as the number of soldiers in many regiments became greatly reduced, especially later in
24725-451: The forces were insufficient. He eventually ordered that the corps of Maj. Gen. Irvin McDowell , which was moving south against Richmond in support of McClellan, remain in the vicinity of the capital. McClellan claimed that the loss of these forces prevented him from taking Richmond during his campaign. The strategic realignment of Union forces caused by Jackson's battle at Kernstown—the only battle he lost in his military career—turned out to be
24940-555: The formal surrender), President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation declaring an insurrection against the laws of the United States had taken place. To suppress the insurrection of the Confederate States and restore federal law in the Southern States, Lincoln called for 75,000 volunteers with ninety-day enlistments to augment the existing U.S. Army of about 15,000 present for duty. He later accepted an additional 40,000 volunteers with three-year enlistments and increased
25155-500: The four-year old capital of Richmond, Virginia on April 3, 1865, and fled southwest by railroad train with the President Jefferson Davis and members of his cabinet gradually continuing moving southwestward first to Lynchburg, Virginia and lost communication to its remaining military commanders, and soon exerted no control over the remaining armies. They were eventually caught and captured near Irwinville, Georgia
25370-422: The harbor of Charleston, South Carolina . On February 28, shortly before Lincoln was sworn in as president, the Provisional Confederate Congress had authorized the organization of a large Provisional Army of the Confederate States (PACS). Under orders from Confederate President Jefferson Davis , C.S. troops under the command of General Pierre Gustave Toutant / P. G. T. Beauregard military forces surrounding
25585-407: The heritage of 1776 in opposite ways. Confederates professed to fight for liberty and independence from a too radical government; Unionists said they fought to preserve the nation conceived in liberty from dismemberment and destruction ... The rhetoric of liberty that had permeated the letters of Confederate volunteers in 1861, grew even stronger as the war progressed. Before and during the Civil War,
25800-618: The home front (such as railroad and river workers, civil officials, telegraph operators, miners, druggists and teachers) were exempt from the draft. The act was amended twice in 1862. On September 27, the maximum age of conscription was extended to 45. On October 11, the Confederate States Congress passed the so-called " Twenty Negro Law ", which exempted anyone who owned 20 or more slaves, a move that caused deep resentment among conscripts who did not own slaves. The C.S. Congress enacted several more amendments throughout
26015-446: The hundreds of Confederate soldiers' letters he had examined, none of them contained any anti-slavery sentiment whatsoever: Although only 20 percent of the soldiers avowed explicit proslavery purposes in their letters and diaries, none at all dissented from that view. McPherson admits some flaws in his sampling of letters. Soldiers from slaveholding families were overrepresented by 100%: Nonslaveholding farmers are underrepresented in
26230-556: The immediate vicinity of Washington, D.C. , freeing up other Union troops to participate in Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan 's Peninsula campaign against Richmond. The remaining division, under Brig. Gen. James Shields , was stationed at Strasburg to guard the lower (northeastern) Valley, and intelligence indicated that it was withdrawing toward Winchester. Banks made preparations to leave the Valley personally on March 23. Jackson's orders from Johnston were to prevent Banks's force from leaving
26445-577: The institution of slavery . On February 28, 1861, the Provisional Confederate Congress established a provisional volunteer army and gave control over military operations and authority for mustering state forces and volunteers to the newly chosen Confederate States president, Jefferson Davis (1808-1889),. Davis was a graduate of the United States Military Academy , on the Hudson River at West Point, New York , colonel of
26660-539: The longtime Federal Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor, held by a small U.S. Army garrison under the command of Major Robert Anderson . (1805-1871). By March 1861, the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States meeting in the temporary capital of Montgomery, Alabama , expanded the provisional military forces and established a more permanent regular Confederate States Army. An accurate count of
26875-401: The main Valley (west of Massanutten Mountain). Jackson's men made good time on the Valley Pike, marching more than 40 miles in one 36-hour period, but heavy rains and deep mud delayed their pursuers. For the next five days, frequent clashes occurred between Turner Ashby's cavalry (screening the rear of Jackson's march) and lead Union cavalry. Ashby also burned some bridges across the South Fork of
27090-400: The men and hurled objects from doorways and windows. Jackson was overcome with enthusiasm and rode cheering after the retreating enemy. When a staff officer protested that he was in an exposed position, Jackson shouted "Go back and tell the whole army to press forward to the Potomac!" The Confederate pursuit was ineffective because Ashby had ordered his cavalry away from the mainstream to chase
27305-440: The message "Look out for your left, your position is turned." Evans hastily led 900 of his men from their position fronting the Stone Bridge to a new location on the slopes of Matthews Hill, a low rise to the northwest of his previous position. The Confederate delaying action on Matthews Hill included a spoiling attack launched by Major Roberdeau Wheat 's 1st Louisiana Special Battalion, " Wheat's Tigers ". After Wheat's command
27520-609: The military situation at Charleston, South Carolina from state forces. On April 12, 1861, open warfare between the Confederate States and the United States began when Confederate forces barraged Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor , which had been occupied by the United States Army since December 26, 1860. On April 15, 1861 (two days after the Federal Army forces surrendered at Fort Sumter, one day after
27735-533: The morning. Jackson marched aggressively north with his 3,000-man division, reduced from its peak as stragglers fell out of the column, unaware that he was soon to be attacking almost 9,000 men. Jackson moved north from Woodstock and arrived before the Union position at Kernstown around 11 a.m., Sunday, March 23. He sent Turner Ashby on a feint against Kimball's position on the Valley Turnpike while his main force—the brigades of Col. Samuel Fulkerson and Brig. Gen. Richard B. Garnett (the Stonewall Brigade )—attacked
27950-661: The mountain (elements of the 32nd Ohio) as an advance picket, and more troops posted around North Mountain, received intelligence that Jackson and Johnson were combining against him and, and skirmishing intensified across the valley between Union and Confederate pickets. Despite wishing for battle, he began to fall back across the Alleghenies due to knowledge of the enemy's numerical superiority, and he dispatched requests to Franklin for reinforcements, which general Schenck obliged and prepared his troops to move southwards to reinforce Milroy at 11:00 AM on May 7. Milroy attempted to stifle
28165-511: The move, as they believed it would strengthen pro-slavery sentiment in the Confederacy, and thus lead to greater enlistment of soldiers in the Confederate armies. One Confederate soldier from the West in Texas gave his reasons for fighting for the Confederacy, stating that "we are fighting for our property", contrasting this with the motivations of Union soldiers, who, he claimed, were fighting for
28380-592: The need to protect or to destroy slavery. Others point to less overtly political reasons to fight, such as the defense of one's home and family, or the honor and brotherhood to be preserved when fighting alongside other men. Most historians agree that, no matter what he thought about when he went into the war, the experience of combat affected him profoundly and sometimes affected his reasons for continuing to fight. Educated soldiers drew upon their knowledge of American history to justify their costs. Historian James M. McPherson says: Confederate and Union soldiers interpreted
28595-451: The next day, thus it is unclear exactly what he said or meant. Moreover, none of his subordinates wrote reports of the battle, so there is no first-hand account of the exchange. Major Burnett Rhett, chief of staff to General Johnston, claimed that Bee was angry at Jackson's failure to come immediately to the relief of Bee's and Bartow's brigades while they were under heavy pressure. Those who subscribe to this opinion believe that Bee's statement
28810-534: The north, seemingly abandoning the area, but in fact halting nearby to remain in reserve. He then turned over tactical command of his division to Col. Nathan Kimball, although throughout the battle to come, he sent numerous messages and orders to Kimball. Confederate loyalists in Winchester mistakenly informed Turner Ashby that Shields had left only four regiments and a few guns (about 3,000 men) and that these remaining troops had orders to march for Harpers Ferry in
29025-464: The official count of 103,400 deserters is too low. He concludes that most of the desertions came because the soldier felt he owed a higher duty to his own family than to the Confederacy. Confederate policies regarding desertion generally were severe. For example, on August 19, 1862, famed General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson (1824-1863), approved the court-martial sentence of execution for three soldiers for desertion, rejecting pleas for clemency from
29240-459: The only foreign-made weapons on the field. The 79th New York was thoroughly decimated by Hampton's musket fire and began to disintegrate. Wade Hampton gestured towards their colonel, James Cameron, and remarked "Look at that brave officer trying to lead his men and they won't follow him." Shortly afterwards, Cameron, the brother of US Secretary of War Simon Cameron , was fatally wounded. It has been claimed that Hampton deliberately targeted officers of
29455-464: The other, the later Confederacy's soldiers did not, as the Confederate ideology of white supremacy negated any contradiction between the two: Unlike many slaveholders in the age of Thomas Jefferson, Confederate soldiers from slaveholding families expressed no feelings of embarrassment or inconsistency in fighting for their liberty while holding other people in slavery. Indeed, white supremacy and
29670-451: The pivotal Battle of Chancellorsville , the average U.S. Army infantry regiment's strength was 433 men, versus 409 for Confederate infantry regiments. Rough unit sizes for CSA combat units during the war: Regiments, which were the basic units of army organization through which soldiers were supplied and deployed, were raised by individual states. They were generally referred by number and state, for example 1st Texas , 12th Virginia . To
29885-469: The points of offense and defense." Given Hotchkiss's mapmaking skills, Jackson would have a significant advantage over his Federal opponents in the campaign to come. On April 1, Banks lunged forward, advancing to Woodstock along Stony Creek, where he once again was delayed by supply problems. Jackson took up a new position at Rude's Hill near Mount Jackson and New Market . Banks advanced again on April 16, surprising Ashby's cavalry by fording Stony Creek at
30100-469: The popular press of Richmond, including its five major newspapers, sought to inspire a sense of patriotism, Confederate identity, and the moral high ground in the southern population. The southern churches met the shortage of Army chaplains by sending missionaries. The Southern Baptists sent a total of 78 missionaries, starting in 1862. Presbyterians were even more active, with 112 missionaries sent in early 1865. Other missionaries were funded and supported by
30315-465: The problems and deficiencies that were typical of the first year of the war. Units were committed piecemeal, attacks were frontal, infantry failed to protect exposed artillery, tactical intelligence was minimal, and neither commander was able to employ his whole force effectively. McDowell, with 35,000 men, could commit only about 18,000, and the combined Confederate forces, with about 32,000 men, also committed 18,000. On December 20, 1860, South Carolina
30530-399: The pursuit. In Washington, President Lincoln and members of the cabinet waited for news of a Union victory. Instead, a telegram arrived stating "General McDowell's army in full retreat through Centreville. The day is lost. Save Washington and the remnants of this army." The tidings were happier in the Confederate capital. From the battlefield President Davis telegraphed Richmond, "We have won
30745-404: The rank of (full) general; the highest-ranking (earliest date of rank) was Samuel Cooper , Adjutant General and Inspector General of the Confederate States Army. Officers' uniforms bore a braided design on the sleeves and kepi , the number of adjacent strips (and therefore the width of the lines of the design) denoting rank. The color of the piping and kepi denoted the military branch. The braid
30960-455: The rebel advance over Shenandoah Mountain by posting two artillery pieces along the road, which slowed down Jackson's column. As more Confederate columns continued to cross the mountains, Milroy decided to retreat northwards for McDowell and await arrival of reinforcements. On the morning of May 8, Milroy's command was surprised to see the Confederate troops moving to occupy strong positions atop Bull Pasture Mountain. Milroy immediately decided that
31175-488: The regiments of volunteers raised by States under Lincoln's call rushed to defend the capital. General in Chief Lt. Gen. Winfield Scott laid out his strategy to subdue the Confederate States on May 3, 1861. He proposed that an army of 80,000 men be organized to sail down the Mississippi River and capture New Orleans . While the Army "strangled" the Confederacy in the west, the U.S. Navy would blockade Southern ports along
31390-468: The remainder of Evans's, Bee's, and Bartow's commands received some cover from Capt. John D. Imboden and his battery of four 6-pounder guns, who held off the Union advance while the Confederates attempted to regroup on Henry House Hill. They were met by generals Johnston and Beauregard, who had just arrived from Johnston's headquarters at the M. Lewis Farm, "Portici". Fortunately for the Confederates, McDowell did not press his advantage and attempt to seize
31605-454: The rest of the army. McDowell's force crumbled and began to retreat. ( Further map details, see: Additional Map 8 , Additional Map 9 , Additional Map 10 , Additional Map 11 and Additional Map 12 .) The retreat was relatively orderly up to the Bull Run crossings, but was poorly managed by the Union officers. A Union wagon was overturned by artillery fire on a bridge spanning Cub Run Creek, inciting panic in McDowell's force. As
31820-423: The reverse slope, where they could be safely reloaded. Meanwhile, McDowell ordered the batteries of Ricketts and Griffin to move from Dogan's Ridge to the hill for close infantry support. Their 11 guns engaged in a fierce artillery duel across 300 yards (270 m) against Jackson's 13. Unlike many engagements in the Civil War, here the Confederate artillery had an advantage. The Union pieces were now within range of
32035-443: The right of property in slaves were at the core of the ideology for which Confederate soldiers fought. McPherson states that Confederate States Army soldiers did not discuss the issue of slavery as often as the opposing United States Army soldiers did, because most Confederate soldiers readily accepted as an obvious fact that they were fighting to perpetuate slavery and thus did not feel the need to debate over it: [O]nly 20 percent of
32250-553: The rugged terrain—densely forested, steep slopes and ravines—offered opportunities for Union attackers to climb the 500 feet to the summit without being subjected to constant Confederate fire. The Union generals realized that they were outnumbered by the 10,000 men that Jackson and Johnson commanded and that their men would be particularly vulnerable to artillery fire from Sitlington Hill. They did not realize that Jackson could not bring up his artillery. Therefore, in order to buy time for their troops to withdraw at night, Milroy recommended
32465-409: The same insignia regardless of grade. This was a decision made early in the conflict. The Confederate Congress initially made the rank of brigadier general the highest rank. As the war progressed, the other general-officer ranks were quickly added, but no insignia for them was created. (Robert E. Lee was a notable exception to this. He chose to wear the rank insignia of a colonel.) Only seven men achieved
32680-422: The sample of 429 Southern soldiers explicitly voiced proslavery convictions in their letters or diaries. As one might expect, a much higher percentage of soldiers from slaveholding families than from non-slaveholding families expressed such a purpose: 33 percent, compared with 12 percent. Ironically, the proportion of Union soldiers who wrote about the slavery question was greater, as the next chapter will show. There
32895-487: The scene of fighting was decisive. Jackson and Bee's brigades had done the largest share of fighting in the battle; Jackson's brigade had fought almost alone for four hours and sustained over 50% casualties. Bull Run was the largest and bloodiest battle in United States history up until that point. Union casualties were 460 killed, 1,124 wounded, and 1,312 missing or captured; Confederate casualties were 387 killed, 1,582 wounded, and 13 missing (a very high 10% casualty rate of
33110-401: The soldiers streamed uncontrollably toward Centreville, discarding their arms and equipment, McDowell ordered Col. Dixon S. Miles 's division to act as a rear guard, but it was impossible to rally the army short of Washington. In the disorder that followed, hundreds of Union troops were taken prisoner. Wagons and artillery were abandoned, including the 30-pounder Parrott rifle , which had opened
33325-459: The soldiers' regimental commander. General Jackson's goal was to maintain discipline in a volunteer army whose homes were under threat of enemy occupation. Historians of the Civil War have emphasized how soldiers from poor families deserted because they were urgently needed at home. Local pressures mounted as Union forces occupied more and more Confederate territory, putting more and more families at risk of hardship. One Confederate Army officer at
33540-488: The solidarity of the Confederacy was dissatisfaction in the Appalachian Mountains districts caused by lingering Unionism and a distrust of the power wielded by the slave-holding class. Many of their soldiers deserted, returned home, and formed a military force that fought off Regular Army units trying to capture and punish them. North Carolina lost nearly a quarter of its soldiers (24,122) to desertion. This
33755-436: The southeast in the Peninsula campaign , Maj. Gen. Irvin McDowell 's large corps was poised to hit Richmond from the north, and Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks 's army was threatening the Shenandoah Valley . However, Jackson's Confederate troops were in "excellent spirits," laying the foundation for his performance in the Valley that spring, which helped derail the Union plans and re-energize Confederate morale elsewhere. During
33970-509: The state capital of Virginia in Richmond. Both the United States and the Confederate States began in earnest to raise large, mostly volunteer, armies, with the opposing objectives: putting down the rebellion and preserving the Union on the one hand, and establishing Southern independence from the northern United States on the other. The Confederate States Congress provided for a regular Confederate States Army, patterned after its parent in
34185-513: The stone bridge around 10:00 a.m., and crossed at an unguarded ford and struck the right flank of the Confederate defenders. This surprise attack, coupled with pressure from Burnside and Maj. George Sykes , collapsed the Confederate line shortly after 11:30 a.m., sending them in a disorderly retreat to Henry House Hill. ( Further map details, see: Additional Map 4 , Additional Map 5 , Additional Map 6 and Additional Map 7 .) As they retreated from their Matthews Hill position,
34400-435: The strategic ground immediately, choosing to bombard the hill with the batteries of Capts. James B. Ricketts (Battery I, 1st U.S. Artillery) and Charles Griffin (Battery D, 5th U.S.) from Dogan's Ridge. Brig. Gen Thomas J. Jackson 's Virginia Brigade came up in support of the disorganized Confederates around noon, accompanied by Col. Wade Hampton and his Hampton's Legion , and Col. J.E.B. Stuart 's cavalry along with
34615-554: The strength of the U.S. Army to 156,861, further enlarged to 183,588 present for duty on July 1. Lincoln's actions caused four more Southern states, including Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina and Tennessee, to adopt ordinances of secession and join the Confederate States of America. On May 29, 1861, with the arrival in Richmond, Virginia of Confederate President Jefferson Davis , the Confederate States capital had been moved from Montgomery to Richmond. In Washington, D.C. , many of
34830-410: The structures briefly, but the Confederates prevailed and burned the building, tore up railroad track, and cut the telegraph wires, isolating Front Royal from Banks at Strasburg. Meanwhile, Jackson led his infantry on a detour over a path named Gooney Manor Road to skirt the reach of Federal guns on his approach to Front Royal. From a ridge south of town, Jackson observed that the Federals were camped near
35045-455: The subsequent acts came before five state supreme courts; all five upheld them. In his 2010 book Major Problems in the Civil War , historian Michael Perman says that historians are of two minds on why millions of men seemed so eager to fight, suffer and die over four years: Some historians emphasize that Civil War soldiers were driven by political ideology, holding firm beliefs about the importance of liberty, Union, or state rights, or about
35260-520: The successful summer of 1861, particularly the First Battle of Bull Run (First Manassas), its prospects declined quickly. Union armies in the Western Theater , under Ulysses S. Grant and others, captured Southern territory and won significant battles at Fort Donelson and Shiloh . And in the East , Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan 's massive Army of the Potomac was approaching Richmond from
35475-432: The sweltering heat, the Union army was allowed to rest in Centreville . McDowell reduced the size of his army to approximately 31,000 by dispatching Brig. Gen. Theodore Runyon with 5,000 troops to protect the army's rear. In the meantime, McDowell searched for a way to outflank Beauregard, who had drawn up his lines along Bull Run. On July 18, the Union commander sent a division under Brig. Gen. Daniel Tyler to pass on
35690-406: The terrain proved to be a decisive tactical advantage for Jackson throughout the rest of the campaign. On May 8, after more than a month of skirmishing with Banks, Jackson moved deceptively to the west of the Valley and drove back elements of Maj. Gen. John C. Frémont 's army in the Battle of McDowell , preventing a potential combination of the two Union armies against him. Jackson then headed down
35905-422: The time his men started the Federals were already 13 miles away. On a high ridge overlooking the road to Franklin , Schenck took up a defensive position and Jackson did not attempt to attack him. Union casualties were 259 (34 killed, 220 wounded, 5 missing), Confederate 420 (116 killed, 300 wounded, 4 missing), one of the rare cases in the Civil War where the attacker lost fewer men than the defender. While Jackson
36120-456: The time noted, "The deserters belong almost entirely to the poorest class of non-slave-holders whose labor is indispensable to the daily support of their families" and that "When the father, husband or son is forced into the service, the suffering at home with them is inevitable. It is not in the nature of these men to remain quiet in the ranks under such circumstances." Some soldiers also deserted from ideological motivations. A growing threat to
36335-401: The total Confederate wounded is 194,026. In comparison, the best estimates of the number of Union military personnel deaths are 110,100 killed in battle, 224,580 deaths from disease, and 30,218 deaths in Confederate prison camps. The estimated figure for Union Army wounded is 275,174. The main Confederate armies, the Army of Northern Virginia under General Robert E. Lee and the remnants of
36550-492: The total number of individuals who served in the Military forces of the Confederate States (Army, Navy and Marine Corps) is not possible due to incomplete and destroyed / burned Confederate records; and archives. Estimates of the number of Confederate soldiers, sailors and marines are between 750,000 and 1,000,000 troops. This does not include an unknown number of Negro slaves who were pressed into performing various tasks for
36765-577: The town of Port Republic in heavy rains and on May 2, turned his men east in the direction of Charlottesville and began marching over the Blue Ridge. To the surprise of his men and officers, whom Jackson habitually left in the dark as to his intentions, on May 4 they boarded trains that were heading west, not east toward Richmond, as they had anticipated. The movement to the east had been a clever deception. On May 5, Jackson's army camped around Staunton, about 6 miles from Johnson's command. On May 7, Milroy, whose troops were based at McDowell, with pickets east of
36980-410: The troops, unaccustomed to marching, moved in starts and stops. Along the route soldiers often broke ranks to wander off to pick apples or blackberries or to get water, regardless of the orders of their officers to remain in ranks. The Confederate Army of the Potomac (21,883 effectives) under Beauregard was encamped near Manassas Junction where he prepared a defensive position along the south bank of
37195-400: The two forces were to exist concurrently, little was done to organize the Confederate regular army. Members of all the military forces of the Confederate States (the army, the navy, and the marine corps) are often referred to as "Confederates", and members of the Confederate army were referred to as "Confederate soldiers". Supplementing the Confederate army were the various state militias of
37410-522: The various Union armies opposing it, which together numbered 52,000 men in June 1862. In March 1862, at the time of the Battle of Kernstown , Jackson commanded the brigades of Brig. Gen. Richard B. Garnett , Col. Jesse S. Burks , Col. Samuel V. Fulkerson , and cavalry under Col. Turner Ashby . In early May, at the Battle of McDowell , Jackson commanded two units that were putatively armies, although they were smaller than normal divisions : his own "Army of
37625-443: The various forts, arsenals, shipyards and other seized federal installations from the secessionists, to put down and suppress the rebellion and to save the Union. Four more upper border slave states (North Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas and finally Virginia) then joined the Confederacy, making eleven seceded states rather than fight fellow Southerners. The Confederacy then moved its national capital from temporary Montgomery, Alabama to
37840-436: The war to address losses suffered in battle as well as the United States' greater supply of manpower. In December 1863, it abolished the previous practice of allowing a rich drafted man to hire a substitute to take his place in the ranks. Substitution had also been practiced in the United States, leading to similar resentment from the lower classes. In February 1864, the age limits were extended to between 17 and 50. Challenges to
38055-488: The war, more than four were often assigned to a brigade. Occasionally, regiments would be transferred between brigades. Two to four brigades usually formed a division . Two to four divisions usually formed a corps . Two to four corps usually formed an army. Occasionally, a single corps might operate independently as if it were a small army. The Confederate States Army consisted of several field armies, named after their primary area of operation. The largest Confederate field army
38270-590: The war, stated in a letter to a friend that "I've always understood that we went to war on account of the thing we quarreled with the North about. I've never heard of any other cause than slavery." As stated by researcher / authors Andrew Hall, Connor Huff and Shiro Kuriwaki in the article Wealth, Slaveownership, and Fighting for the Confederacy: An Empirical Study of the American Civil War , research done using an 1862 Georgia lottery showed that rich white Southern men actually enlisted at
38485-486: The war. Reports from the C.S. War Department beginning at the end of 1861 indicated 326,768 men that year, 449,439 in 1862, 464,646 in 1863, 400,787 in 1864, and "last reports" showed 358,692. Estimates of enlistments throughout the war range from 1,227,890 to 1,406,180. The following calls for soldiers were issued: The C.S.A. was initially a (strategically) defensive army, and many soldiers were resentful when General Robert E. Lee led his Army of Northern Virginia across
38700-475: The wishes of the General-in-Chief, in keeping General Johnston's force at Winchester." For the maneuver to be successful McDowell felt he needed to act quickly. He had already begun to hear rumors that Johnston had slipped out of the valley and was headed for Manassas Junction. If the rumors were true, McDowell might soon be facing 34,000 Confederates instead of 22,000. Another reason for quick action
38915-537: Was McDowell's concern that the ninety-day enlistments of many of his regiments were about to expire. "In a few days I will lose many thousands of the best of this force", he wrote Washington on the eve of battle. In fact, the next morning two units of McDowell's command, their enlistments expiring that day, would turn a deaf ear to McDowell's appeal to stay a few days longer. Instead, to the sounds of battle, they would march back to Washington to be mustered out of service. Becoming more frustrated, McDowell resolved to attack
39130-639: Was a decision by Abraham Lincoln to redirect 20,000 men from the corps of Maj. Gen. Irvin McDowell to the Valley from their intended mission to reinforce George B. McClellan on the Peninsula. At 4 p.m. on May 24, he telegraphed to McClellan, "In consequence of General Banks's critical position I have been compelled to suspend General McDowell's movements to you. The enemy are making a desperate push upon Harper's Ferry, and we are trying to throw Frémont's force and part of McDowell's in their rear." On May 24, Jackson planned to intercept Banks's retreating army, but it
39345-410: Was a major factor in combat motivation. According to his analysis, the soldiers' faith was consoling for the loss of comrades; it was a shield against fear; it helped reduce drinking and fighting in the ranks; it enlarged the soldiers' community of close friends and helped compensate for their long-term separation from home. In his 1997 book For Cause and Comrades , which examines the motivations of
39560-449: Was a strategic weakness for the Confederacy, and there are only a few examples of its armies acting in concert across multiple theaters to achieve a common objective. One instance occurred in late 1862 with Lee's invasion of Maryland , coincident with two other actions: Bragg's invasion of Kentucky and Earl Van Dorn 's advance against Corinth, Mississippi . All three initiatives were unsuccessful, however. Georgia Governor Joseph E. Brown
39775-413: Was able to board trains at Piedmont Station and rush to Manassas Junction to reinforce Beauregard's men. On July 19–20, significant reinforcements bolstered the Confederate lines behind Bull Run. Johnston arrived with all of his army except for the troops of Brig. Gen. Kirby Smith , who were still in transit. Most of the new arrivals were posted in the vicinity of Blackburn's Ford, and Beauregard's plan
39990-402: Was about 35,000 although only about 18,000 were actually engaged. The Union army was organized as follows: While McDowell organized the Army of Northeastern Virginia, a smaller Union command was organized and stationed northwest of Washington, near Harper's Ferry. Commanded by Maj. Gen. Robert Patterson , 18,000 men of the Department of Pennsylvania protected against a Confederate incursion from
40205-784: Was an extreme case of a Southern States Rights advocate asserting control over Confederate soldiers: he defied the Confederate government's wartime policies and resisted the military draft. Believing that local troops should be used only for the defense of Georgia, Brown tried to stop Colonel Francis Bartow from taking Georgia troops out of the state to the First Battle of Bull Run. Many of the Confederacy's senior military leaders (including Robert E. Lee, Albert Sidney Johnston , and James Longstreet ) and even President Jefferson Davis, were former U.S. Army and, in smaller numbers, U.S. Navy officers who had been opposed to, disapproved of, or were at least unenthusiastic about secession, but resigned their U.S. commissions upon hearing that their states had left
40420-411: Was at McDowell, Ewell was fidgeting at Swift Run Gap, trying to sort out numerous orders he was receiving from Jackson and Johnston. On May 13 Jackson ordered Ewell to pursue Banks if he withdrew down the Valley from Strasburg, whereas Johnston had ordered Ewell to leave the Valley and return to the army protecting Richmond if Banks moved eastward to join McDowell at Fredericksburg. Since Shields's division
40635-415: Was being demonstrated by Prof. Thaddeus S. C. Lowe in Washington, to perform aerial reconnaissance. McDowell 's Army of Northeastern Virginia was organized into five infantry divisions of three to five brigades each. Each brigade contained three to five infantry regiments. An artillery battery was generally assigned to each brigade. The total number of Union troops present at the First Battle of Bull Run
40850-415: Was coming from the Henry House and turned his guns on the building. A shell that crashed through the bedroom wall tore off one of the widow's feet and inflicted multiple injuries, from which she died later that day. As his men were pushed back towards Henry House Hill, Bee exclaimed to Jackson, "The Enemy are driving us." Jackson, a former U.S. Army officer and professor at the Virginia Military Institute ,
41065-414: Was complex and required synchronized movements by separate commands. McDowell was unenthusiastic about his role, wishing to retain his original mission of marching against Richmond to support McClellan, but he sent the division of Brig. Gen. James Shields, recently arrived from Banks's army, marching back to the Valley, to be followed by a second division, commanded by Maj. Gen. Edward O. C. Ord . But Frémont
41280-417: Was concerned that Jackson might move into western Virginia against Maj. Gen. John C. Frémont , so he ordered that the division of Brig. Gen. Louis Blenker be detached from McClellan's Army of the Potomac and sent to reinforce Frémont. Lincoln also took this opportunity to re-examine Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan 's plans for the defenses of Washington while the Peninsula campaign was underway and decided that
41495-521: Was deploying his infantry. The Union force of about 6,000 under Milroy and Schenck was camped in the village to the west side of the Bullpasture River . Overlooking the scene was a spur of Bullpasture Mountain known as Sitlington Hill, a mile-long plateau that could potentially dominate the Union position. However, there were two disadvantages: the single trail that reached the summit was so difficult that artillery could not be deployed there, and
41710-484: Was exacerbated by a charge by the Louisiana Tigers, who began looting and pillaging in the wagon train. When Union artillery and infantry arrived to challenge Jackson at around 4 p.m, Richard Taylor's infantry turned to meet the threat while Jackson sent his artillery and cavalry north to harass the Union column ahead. By the time Taylor's attack started the Union troops had withdrawn and Jackson realized that it
41925-422: Was expected to bring an early end to the Confederacy. Yielding to political pressure, Brigadier General Irvin McDowell led his unseasoned Union Army across Bull Run against the equally inexperienced Confederate Army of Brigadier General P. G. T. Beauregard , whose forces were camped near Manassas Junction. McDowell's ambitious plan for a surprise flank attack on the Confederate left was poorly executed although
42140-495: Was first to defeat the small Federal outpost at Front Royal (about 1,000 men of the 1st Maryland Infantry under Col. John R. Kenly ), a turning movement that would make the Strasburg position untenable. Early on May 23, Turner Ashby and a detachment of cavalry forded the South Fork of the Shenandoah River and rode northwest to capture a Union depot and railroad trestle at Buckton Station. Two companies of Union infantry defended
42355-486: Was forced to telegraph for help from Robert E. Lee, who convinced President Davis that a potential victory in the Valley had more immediate importance than countering Shields. Johnston modified his orders to Ewell: "The object you have to accomplish is the prevention of the junction of General Banks's troops and those of General McDowell's." On May 21, Jackson marched his command east from New Market over Massanutten Mountain, combining with Ewell on May 22, and proceeded down
42570-484: Was led by Col. Nathan Kimball with brigades under Kimball, Col. Jeremiah C. Sullivan , Col. Erastus B. Tyler , and cavalry under Col. Thornton F. Brodhead . At the end of April, Shields' division would be transferred from Banks to McDowell's command, leaving Banks with just one division, under Williams, consisting of the brigades of Cols. Dudley Donnelly and George H. Gordon , and a cavalry brigade under Brig. Gen. John P. Hatch . Maj. Gen. John C. Frémont commanded
42785-613: Was meant to be pejorative: "Look at Jackson standing there like a stone wall!" After Bee's wounding, Col. States Rights Gist , serving as Bee's aide-de-camp, took command of the brigade. Artillery commander Griffin decided to move two of his guns to the southern end of his line, hoping to provide enfilade fire against the Confederates. At approximately 3 p.m., these guns were overrun by the 33rd Virginia, whose men were outfitted in blue uniforms, causing Griffin's commander, Maj. William F. Barry , to mistake them for Union troops and to order Griffin not to fire on them. Close range volleys from
43000-715: Was merely the rearguard of Banks's column. He sent word to Ewell to move quickly to Winchester and deploy for an attack south of the town. Jackson's men began a pursuit down the Valley Pike, but they were dismayed to see that Ashby's cavalrymen had paused to loot the wagon train and many of them had become drunk from Federal whiskey. The pursuit continued long after dark and after 1 a.m., Jackson reluctantly agreed to allow his exhausted men to rest for two hours. The enemy poured grape and musketry into Taylor's line as soon as it came in sight. Gen. Taylor rode in front of his brigade, drawn sword in hand, occasionally turning his horse, at other times merely turning in his saddle to see that his line
43215-457: Was not clear what route Banks would take. He could either march straight for Winchester or, if the Confederates abandoned Front Royal and raced to Winchester ahead of him, he could slip behind them and escape to the east over the Blue Ridge. Jackson decided to watch the road from Cedarville to Middletown. If Banks moved directly to Winchester, Jackson could hit him in his flank by using that road, but he deemed it unwise to commit his entire force from
43430-568: Was now threatened by three small Union armies. Withdrawing up the Valley from Winchester, Jackson was pursued by Frémont and Shields. On June 8, Ewell defeated Frémont in the Battle of Cross Keys and on the following day, crossed the North River to join forces with Jackson to defeat Shields in the Battle of Port Republic , bringing the campaign to a close. Jackson followed up his successful campaign by forced marches to join Gen. Robert E. Lee for
43645-484: Was reported to have left the Valley, Ewell was in a quandary about which orders to follow. He met in person with Jackson on May 18 at Mount Solon and the two generals decided that while in the Valley, Ewell reported operationally to Jackson, and that a prime opportunity existed to attack Banks's army, now depleted to fewer than 10,000 men, with their combined forces. When subsequent peremptory orders came to Ewell from Johnston to abandon this idea and march to Richmond, Jackson
43860-436: Was slow in positioning themselves, allowing Confederate reinforcements time to arrive by rail. Each side had about 18,000 poorly trained and poorly led troops. The battle was a Confederate victory and was followed by a disorganized post-battle retreat of the Union forces. Just months after the start of the war at Fort Sumter , the northern public clamored for a march against the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia , which
44075-646: Was sometimes left off by officers since it made them conspicuous targets. The kepi was rarely used, the common slouch hat being preferred for its practicality in the Southern climate. Branch colors were used for the color of chevrons—blue for infantry, yellow for cavalry, and red for artillery. This could differ with some units, however, depending on available resources or the unit commander's desire. Cavalry regiments from Texas, for example, often used red insignia and at least one Texas infantry regiment used black. First Battle of Bull Run Department of Northeastern Virginia: Department of Pennsylvania : Army of
44290-509: Was the Army of Northern Virginia , whose surrender at Appomattox Courthouse in 1865 marked the end of major combat operations in the U.S. Civil War. Companies were commanded by captains and had two or more lieutenants. Regiments were commanded by colonels. Lieutenant colonels were second in command. At least one major was next in command. Brigades were commanded by brigadier generals although casualties or other attrition sometimes meant that brigades would be commanded by senior colonels or even
44505-459: Was the first of seven Southern States to declare secession from the Union of the United States. By February 1, 1861, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas passed ordinances of secession, The Constitution of the Confederate States of America was adopted in Montgomery, Alabama on February 8, 1861. On March 1, 1861, Confederate States Army forces assumed control of
44720-439: Was the highest rate of desertion of any Confederate state. Young Samuel Clemens (1835-1910, later to be known as Mark Twain ) soon deserted the Southern army long before he became a world-famous writer, journalist and lecturer, but he often commented upon that episode in his life comically, even writing a book about it. Author Neil Schmitz has examined the deep unease Twain felt about losing his honor, his fear of facing death as
44935-461: Was the real problem for Lincoln's plan. Rather than marching east to Harrisonburg as ordered, he took note of the exceptionally difficult road conditions on Lincoln's route and marched north to Moorefield . (He also was cognizant of the enormous area his department was required to defend and he was concerned about dividing his force and abandoning his subordinate, Brig. Gen. Jacob D. Cox , who had been attacked in southwestern Virginia on May 23.) But as
45150-534: Was the route taken by Gen. Robert E. Lee to invade the North in the Gettysburg campaign of 1863 and by Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early in the Valley campaigns of 1864 . In contrast, the orientation of the Valley offered little advantage to a Northern army headed toward Richmond. But denying the Valley to the Confederacy would be a significant blow. It was an agriculturally rich area—the 2.5 million bushels of wheat produced in 1860, for example, accounted for about 19% of
45365-483: Was thrown back, and Wheat seriously wounded, Evans received reinforcement from two other brigades under Brig. Gen. Barnard Bee and Col. Francis S. Bartow , bringing the force on the flank to 2,800 men. They successfully slowed Hunter's lead brigade (Brig. Gen. Ambrose Burnside ) in its attempts to ford Bull Run and advance across Young's Branch, at the northern end of Henry House Hill . One of Tyler's brigade commanders, Col. William Tecumseh Sherman , moved forward from
45580-415: Was to attack from there to the north toward Centreville. Johnston, the senior officer, approved the plan. If both of the armies had been able to execute their plans simultaneously, it would have resulted in a mutual counterclockwise movement as they attacked each other's left flank. McDowell was getting contradictory information from his intelligence agents, so he called for the balloon Enterprise , which
45795-728: Was to have Ewell's division move into position at Swift Run Gap to threaten Banks's flank, while Jackson's force marched toward the Allegheny Mountains to assist the detached 2,800 men under Brig. Gen. Edward "Allegheny" Johnson , who were resisting the advance toward Staunton of Brig. Gen. Robert H. Milroy, the leading element of Maj. Gen. John C. Frémont's army. If Frémont and Banks were allowed to combine, Jackson's forces could be overwhelmed, so Jackson planned to defeat them in detail. Without waiting for Lee's reply, Jackson executed his plan and on April 30, Ewell's division replaced Jackson's men at Swift Run Gap. Jackson marched south to
46010-556: Was up. They marched up the hill in perfect order, not firing a shot! About half-way to the Yankees in a loud and commanding voice that I am sure the Yankees heard, he gave the order to charge! Rev. Major Robert L. Dabney, Jackson's chaplain Jackson's troops were awakened at 4 a.m. on May 25 to fight the second Sunday battle of the campaign. Jackson was pleased to find during a personal reconnaissance that Banks had not properly secured
46225-402: Was well underway and Joseph E. Johnston had relocated most of his army for the direct protection of Richmond, leaving Jackson's force isolated. Johnston sent new orders to Jackson, instructing him to prevent Banks from seizing Staunton and the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad, reinforcing him with the 8,500-man division under Maj. Gen. Richard S. Ewell , left behind at Brandy Station . Jackson, at
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