The Battle of Peralta was a minor engagement near the end of Confederate General Henry Hopkins Sibley's 1862 New Mexico Campaign.

Battle

Retreating after the

Battle of Glorieta Pass The Battle of Glorieta Pass (March 26–28, 1862) in the northern New Mexico Territory, was the decisive battle of the New Mexico campaign during the American Civil War. Dubbed the " Gettysburg of the West" by some authors (a term described ...

, Confederate troops of the 5th Texas Mounted Volunteers under Colonel Thomas Green camped in the town of Peralta,

New Mexico Territory The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912. It was created from the U.S. provisional government of New Mexico, as a result of ''Santa Fe de Nuevo México ...

and planned to cross a series of irrigation canals the next day. The rest of the Confederate army was encamped on the other side of the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...

in the town of Los Lunas. On April 14 the pursuing

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

forces under Colonel

Edward Canby Edward Richard Sprigg Canby (November 9, 1817 – April 11, 1873) was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. In 1861–1862, Canby commanded the Department of New Mexico, defeating the Confederate Gene ...

caught up with Green. At dawn, Union cavalry attacked and captured the Confederate wagon train, killing and capturing the guard. The Confederates used the low adobe houses in the town as natural fortifications. Canby captured a Confederate supply train which was then approaching Peralta, and then sent

John Chivington John Milton Chivington (January 27, 1821 – October 4, 1894) was an American Methodism, Methodist pastor and Freemasonry, Mason who served as a colonel (United States), colonel in the United States Volunteers during the New Mexico Campaign ...

and Gabriel R. Paul to surround the Confederates to prevent any forces from reaching Green. The adobe walls and irrigation ditches surrounding the town were stronger than Canby was willing to risk an assault on. Learning of the fighting, Sibley led the 4th and 7th Texas Mounted Rifles across the river. The rival armies battered each other in an artillery duel, until a dust storm blew in and allowed the Confederates to withdraw to the west bank of the Rio Grande, leaving behind a town which had been reduced to rubble. The Confederates reached Los Lunas at 4 a.m., where they rested for a few hours before continuing their retreat. Canby followed with the Union army, harassing the Confederate column with cavalry.

References

*Eicher, John H., & Eicher, David J.: ''Civil War High Commands'', Stanford University Press, 2001, . *Heyman, Max L., Jr.: ''Prudent Soldier: A Biography of Major General ERS Canby, 1817-1873'', Frontier Military Series III, Glendale, CA: The Arthur H. Clark Co., 1959. *Filson Historical Society Library: MS #118. "Canby, Edward Richard Sprigg, 1819 ic1873. Papers, 1837-1873." A\C214 (1 box, 146 items; includes contemporary newspaper accounts regarding General Canby's death and its aftermath). *Military biography of Henry Hopkins Sibley from the Cullum biographies *www.sangres.com/history/civilwarnm.htm * Frazier, Donald S. ''Blood & Treasure: Confederate Empire in the Southwest. Texas A&M University Press; College Station, Texas, 1995. {{DEFAULTSORT:Battle Of Peralta Peralta Peralta Peralta Peralta History of Valencia County, New Mexico April 1862 events