The Battle of Richmond,

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

, fought August 29–30, 1862, was one of the most complete

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

victories in the war by

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

Edmund Kirby Smith General Edmund Kirby Smith (May 16, 1824March 28, 1893) was a senior officer of the Confederate States Army who commanded the Trans-Mississippi Department (comprising Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, western Louisiana, Arizona Territory and the Indi ...

against

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

major general

William "Bull" Nelson William "Bull" Nelson (September 27, 1824 – September 29, 1862) was a United States naval officer who became a Union general during the American Civil War. As a Kentuckian, Nelson could have sympathized with the Confederates but, like his st ...

's forces, which were defending the town. It was the first major battle in the

Kentucky Campaign The Confederate Heartland Offensive (August 14 – October 10, 1862), also known as the Kentucky Campaign, was an American Civil War campaign conducted by the Confederate States Army in Tennessee and Kentucky where Generals Braxton Bragg and ...

. The battle took place on and around what is now the grounds of the

Blue Grass Army Depot Blue Grass Army Depot (BGAD) is a U.S. Army Joint Munitions Command storage facility for conventional munitions and chemical weapons. The facility is located in east central Kentucky, southeast of the cities of Lexington and Richmond, Kentucky. ...

, outside

Richmond, Kentucky Richmond is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Madison County, Kentucky, United States. It is named after Richmond, Virginia, and is home to Eastern Kentucky University. In 2019, the population was 36,157. Richmond is the fourth-la ...

Background

In the fall of 1862, two Confederate armies moved on separate paths into Kentucky, hoping to put the shadow

Confederate government of Kentucky The Confederate government of Kentucky was a shadow government established for the Commonwealth of Kentucky by a self-constituted group of Confederate sympathizers during the American Civil War. The shadow government never replaced the elect ...

into power, threaten Union cities along the

Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...

, and recruit men to join the

Confederate 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 ...

. First to move was Smith, leading the Confederate Army of Kentucky, whose ideas provided the initiative for the offensive. General

Braxton Bragg Braxton Bragg (March 22, 1817 – September 27, 1876) was an American army officer during the Second Seminole War and Mexican–American War and Confederate general in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War, serving in the Weste ...

, commanding the

Army of Mississippi There were three formations known as the Army of Mississippi in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. This name is contrasted against Army of the Mississippi, Army of ''the'' Mississippi, which was a Union Army named for the ...

, moved on a roughly parallel track to the west. Smith departed

Knoxville Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state's ...

on August 13, and Bragg left

Chattanooga Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...

on August 27.

Opposing forces

Union

Confederate

Battle

Brigadier General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

Patrick Cleburne Major-General Patrick Ronayne Cleburne ( ; March 16, 1828November 30, 1864) was a senior officer of the Confederate States Army who commanded infantry in the Western Theater of the American Civil War. Born in Ireland, Cleburne served in the 4 ...

led Smith's advance, with

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

John S. Scott's

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

out in front. The Confederate cavalry, while moving north from Big Hill on the road to

on August 29, encountered

troopers and began skirmishing. After noon, Union

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

and

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

joined the fray, forcing the Confederate cavalry to retreat to Big Hill.NPS
At that time, Brigadier General

Mahlon D. Manson Mahlon Dickerson Manson (February 20, 1820 – February 4, 1895) was a druggist, Indiana politician, and a Union general in the American Civil War. Biography Manson was born in Piqua, Ohio, to David Manson, Jr., and Sarah Cornwall. He was a ...

, who commanded Union forces in the area, commanded a brigade to march to

Rogersville, Kentucky Radcliff is a home rule-class city in Hardin County, Kentucky, in the United States. The population was 21,692 at the 2010 census, and in 2019 the estimated population was 22,914. It is included in the Elizabethtown–Fort Knox Metropolitan Are ...

towards the rebels. Fighting for the day stopped after pursuing Union forces briefly skirmished with Cleburne's men in the late afternoon. That night, Manson informed his superior, Bull Nelson, of his situation, and he ordered another brigade to be ready to march in support when required. Manson arrayed his four regiments to the south of Mt Zion church and had them prepare for an attack. Smith ordered Cleburne to attack in the morning and promised to hurry reinforcements (Brigadier General Thomas J. Churchill's

division Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...

). Cleburne started early, marching north, passed through Kingston, dispersed Union

skirmisher Skirmishers are light infantry or light cavalry soldiers deployed as a vanguard, flank guard or rearguard to screen a tactical position or a larger body of friendly troops from enemy advances. They are usually deployed in a skirmish line, an i ...

s, and approached Manson's battle line near Zion Church. As the day progressed, additional troops joined both sides. Following an artillery duel, the battle began, and Mason reinforced the Union left flank which he thought was weakening. But Churchill's troops used a hidden ravine to come up on his right, and after a concerted Confederate attack on the Union right, the Union troops gave way. Retreating into Rogersville, they made another futile stand at their old bivouac. By now, Smith and Nelson had arrived and taken command of their respective armies. Nelson rallied some troops in the cemetery outside Richmond, but they were routed.

Aftermath

Nelson and some of his men escaped, but the Confederates captured over 4,300 Union troops. Total casualties were 5,353 (206 killed, 844 wounded, and 4,303 captured or missing) on the Union side, and 451 (78 killed, 372 wounded, and one missing) for the Confederates.Eicher, p. 316. The way north towards Lexington and Frankfort was open. Civil War historian

Shelby Foote Shelby Dade Foote Jr. (November 17, 1916 – June 27, 2005) was an American writer, historian and journalist. Although he primarily viewed himself as a novelist, he is now best known for his authorship of '' The Civil War: A Narrative'', a three ...

remarked that Smith "accomplished in Kentucky the nearest thing to a Cannae ever scored by any general, North or South, in the course of the whole war."

Battlefield preservation

The

Civil War Trust The American Battlefield Trust is a charitable organization ( 501(c)(3)) whose primary focus is in the preservation of battlefields of the American Civil War, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 through acquisition of battlefield land. Th ...

(a division of the

American Battlefield Trust The American Battlefield Trust is a charitable organization ( 501(c)(3)) whose primary focus is in the preservation of battlefields of the American Civil War, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 through acquisition of battlefield land. Th ...

) and its partners have acquired and preserved 365 acres of the Richmond Battlefield.

"Saved Land" webpage. Accessed May 22, 2018. The

Mt. Zion Christian Church The Mt. Zion Christian Church in Richmond, Kentucky, was completed in 1852 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. Church attendees included slaveholders and their slaves. It has cannonballs embedded in its south wall, f ...

, which served as a hospital during the battle and has cannonballs embedded in its brick walls, is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

. With . Two discontinuous areas totalling were listed on the

as Battle of Richmond Historic Areas in 1996. These included four

contributing buildings In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distric ...

. With .

Notes

References

National Park Service battle descriptionCWSAC Report update – Kentucky
* * Eicher, David J., ''The Longest Night: A Military History of the Civil War'', Simon & Schuster, 2001, . * Foote, Shelby, '' The Civil War: A Narrative, Vol. 1: Fort Sumter to Perryville'', Random House, 1958, . *

External links

Battle of Richmond Association website
(

CWPT The American Battlefield Trust is a charitable organization ( 501(c)(3)) whose primary focus is in the preservation of battlefields of the American Civil War, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 through acquisition of battlefield land. Th ...

) * ttp://www.americanbyways.com/index.php?catid=12 Battle of Richmond Civil War Heritage Byway at American Byways {{DEFAULTSORT:Richmond

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

National Register of Historic Places in Madison County, Kentucky

1862 in Kentucky 1862 in the American Civil War August 1862 events Conflict sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Kentucky American Civil War on the National Register of Historic Places Richmond, Kentucky