The Battle of Spanish Fort took place from March 27 to April 8, 1865, in

Baldwin County, Alabama Baldwin County is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Alabama, on the Gulf coast. It is one of only two counties in Alabama that border the Gulf of Mexico, along with Mobile County. As of the 2020 census, the populat ...

, as part of the

Mobile Campaign A mobile campaign is a campaign, usually marketing, advertising, or public relations-related, through which organizations contact their audience through SMS (text messaging). This form of campaigning allows organizations to reach out and establish ...

of the Western Theater of the American Civil War. After the Union victory in the

Battle of Mobile Bay The Battle of Mobile Bay of August 5, 1864, was a naval and land engagement of the American Civil War in which a Union fleet commanded by Rear Admiral David G. Farragut, assisted by a contingent of soldiers, attacked a smaller Confederate fle ...

, Mobile nevertheless remained in

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 ...

hands. Spanish Fort was heavily fortified as an eastern defense to the city of

Mobile Mobile may refer to: Places * Mobile, Alabama, a U.S. port city * Mobile County, Alabama * Mobile, Arizona, a small town near Phoenix, U.S. * Mobile, Newfoundland and Labrador Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Mobile ( ...

. Fort Huger, Fort (Battery) Tracey, Fort (Battery) McDermott, Fort Alexis, Red Fort, and Old Spanish Fort were all part of the Mobile defenses at Spanish Fort.

Battle

Union forces embarked on a land campaign in early 1865 to take Mobile from the east. Maj. Gen.

E.R.S. 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 Gen ...

's XIII and XVI corps crossed the Fish River at Marlow Ferry, and moved along the eastern shore of

Mobile Bay Mobile Bay ( ) is a shallow inlet of the Gulf of Mexico, lying within the state of Alabama in the United States. Its mouth is formed by the Fort Morgan Peninsula on the eastern side and Dauphin Island, a barrier island on the western side. The ...

forcing the Confederates back into their defenses. Union forces then concentrated on Spanish Fort and Fort Blakely, five miles to the north. On March 27, 1865, Canby’s forces rendezvoused at Danley's Ferry and immediately undertook a siege of Spanish Fort. The Union had enveloped the fort by April 1, and on April 8 captured it. Most of the Confederate forces, under the command of Brig. Gen. Randall L. Gibson, escaped and fled to Mobile, but Spanish Fort was no longer a threat. Fort Blakely continued to fight after Spanish Fort's fall on April 8. However, as early as April 1, when Spanish Fort's fall became inevitable, Union forces had begun moving north in order to concentrate on Fort Blakely, which eventually succumbed late on April 9 in the

Battle of Fort Blakely The Battle of Fort Blakeley took place from April 2 to April 9, 1865, in Baldwin County, Alabama, about north of Spanish Fort, Alabama, as part of the Mobile Campaign of the American Civil War. At the time, Blakeley, Alabama, had been the count ...

. The fall of Spanish Fort and Fort Blakely permitted Union troops to subsequently enter Mobile unopposed after the Army of Mobile evacuated the City, occupying it on April 12, 1865.

Defense plans

Map displaying line of works ordered by Major General Gardner:
Map of Spanish fort and vicinity, drawn under the direction of Lieutenant Colonel V. Sheliha

References

External links

*
National Park Service battle description

Update to the Civil War Sites Advisory Commission Report on the Nation's Civil War Battlefields - State of Alabama

Fort McDermott

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spanish Fort Spanish Fort Spanish Fort Spanish Fort Spanish Fort Spanish Fort Baldwin County, Alabama 1865 in the American Civil War 1865 in Alabama March 1865 events April 1865 events

Battle

Defense plans

See also

References

External links