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The Bull Run campaign, also known as the Manassas campaign, was a series of military engagements in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War in 1861.


Background


Military and political situation

The Confederate forces in northern Virginia were organized into two field armies. Brigadier General P. G. T. Beauregard was appointed commander of the
Confederate Army of the Potomac The Confederate Army of the Potomac, whose name was short-lived, was under the command of Brig. Gen. P. G. T. Beauregard in the early days of the American Civil War. Its only major combat action was the First Battle of Bull Run. Afterwards, the ...
in northeastern Virginia to defend the rail center of Manassas Junction; while General
Joseph E. Johnston Joseph Eggleston Johnston (February 3, 1807 – March 21, 1891) was an American career army officer, serving with distinction in the United States Army during the Mexican–American War (1846–1848) and the Seminole Wars. After Virginia secede ...
commanded the Army of the Shenandoah near Harpers Ferry in the Shenandoah Valley. The
Manassas Gap Railroad The Manassas Gap Railroad (MGRR) ran from Mount Jackson, Virginia, to the Orange and Alexandria Railroad's Manassas Junction, which later became the city of Manassas, Virginia. Chartered by the Virginia General Assembly in 1850, the MGRR was a n ...
connected the two forces and allowed for the quick transfer of reinforcements between the two armies. During the months of June and July, Beauregard sent
Confederate President The president of the Confederate States was the head of state and head of government of the Confederate States. The president was the chief executive of the federal government and was the commander-in-chief of the Confederate Army and the Confe ...
Jefferson Davis Jefferson F. Davis (June 3, 1808December 6, 1889) was an American politician who served as the president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865. He represented Mississippi in the United States Senate and the House of Representatives as a ...
several proposals for offensive operations into Maryland, involving the various Confederate armies in Virginia, but Davis rejected them for being impractical, saying the Confederates lacked the proper resources to support any of his offensive plans. Following the Union occupation of Alexandria, Virginia, the Union forces in Virginia were organized into the Department of Northeastern Virginia, commanded by Brigadier General
Irvin McDowell Irvin McDowell (October 15, 1818 – May 4, 1885) was a career American army officer. He is best known for his defeat in the First Battle of Bull Run, the first large-scale battle of the American Civil War. In 1862, he was given command o ...
, who was ordered to advance on the Confederate national capital of
Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...
. Meanwhile,
Robert Patterson Robert Patterson (January 12, 1792 – August 7, 1881) was an Irish-born United States major general during the American Civil War, chiefly remembered for inflicting an early defeat on Stonewall Jackson, but crucially failing to stop Confede ...
was assigned to command the
Department of Pennsylvania The Department of Pennsylvania (or General Patterson's Army) was a large military unit in the Union Army at the outset of the American Civil War. Established on April 27, 1861, its territory consisted of Pennsylvania, Delaware, and all of Maryland ...
and was ordered to tie down Johnston's forces in the northern Shenandoah Valley, preventing him from reinforcing Beauregard. Patterson advanced into the Valley in early June, forcing the evacuation of Harpers Ferry on June 17. Johnston retreated back to the town of Winchester, where he was reinforced by home guard units and local militia, which caused Patterson to think he was outnumbered. During this time, Patterson was having difficulty receiving supplies from Pennsylvania; also his regiments of three–month volunteers were nearing the end of their enlistments and were refusing to stay any longer. The Union general–in–chief, Brevet Lieutenant General
Winfield Scott Winfield Scott (June 13, 1786May 29, 1866) was an American military commander and political candidate. He served as a general in the United States Army from 1814 to 1861, taking part in the War of 1812, the Mexican–American War, the early s ...
, was pressing him to send his Regular Army units to McDowell's army. During the months of June and early July, the armies of McDowell and Beauregard engaged in several skirmishes in northeastern Virginia while the Union government and military leadership debated the proper course of action for McDowell to take. Scott favored concentrating a Union army to capture the Mississippi River valley, while McDowell viewed his army as too inexperienced to attack Beauregard yet. Due to Pressure from U.S. President
Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...
and the Union press, McDowell started his campaign against Manassas Junction on July 17. Johnston received orders the next day to start transferring his army to Manassas Junction to reinforce Beauregard; using the Manassas Gap Railroad, his army arrived on July 20 and 21. The Manassas Campaign would end in a Confederate Victory due to this inexperience. It was this early campaign that would show the North that the Confederacy was not going to be a quick rebellion.


Opposing forces


Union


Confederate


Battles


Hoke's Run

Following the Confederate abandonment of Harpers Ferry on June 15, Johnston sent Colonel
Thomas J. Jackson Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (January 21, 1824 – May 10, 1863) was a Confederate general during the American Civil War, considered one of the best-known Confederate commanders, after Robert E. Lee. He played a prominent role in near ...
's brigade to establish a camp near the town of Martinsburg, so to both serve as a warning of a Union advance and to delay Patterson's force. On July 2, Patterson crossed the Potomac and advanced on Jackson's position. Outnumbered and outflanked, Jackson fell back slowly, giving time for his supply train to escape before retreating to rejoin Johnston's main army.


Blackburn's Ford

McDowell's army arrived at Centreville during the morning of July 18, led by Brigadier General
Daniel Tyler Daniel P. Tyler IV (January 7, 1799 – November 30, 1882) was an iron manufacturer, railroad president, and one of the first Union Army generals of the American Civil War. Early life Daniel P. Tyler IV was born in Brooklyn, Connecticut to D ...
's division. Under orders to reconnoiter the Confederate defenses near Blackburn's Ford but not to bring on an engagement, Tyler launched an attack with Colonel
Israel B. Richardson Israel Bush Richardson (December 26, 1815 – November 3, 1862) was a United States Army officer during the Mexican–American War and American Civil War, where he was a major general in the Union Army. Nicknamed "Fighting Dick" for his prowess on ...
's brigade but was repulsed by the brigades of
James Longstreet James Longstreet (January 8, 1821January 2, 1904) was one of the foremost Confederate generals of the American Civil War and the principal subordinate to General Robert E. Lee, who called him his "Old War Horse". He served under Lee as a corps ...
and
Jubal Early Jubal Anderson Early (November 3, 1816 – March 2, 1894) was a Virginia lawyer and politician who became a Confederate general during the American Civil War. Trained at the United States Military Academy, Early resigned his U.S. Army commissio ...
. The battle ended with an artillery duel which lasted until dark, at which time Tyler withdrew back to Centreville.


First Bull Run (Manassas)

Following Tyler's defeat, McDowell decided to attempt an attack on the Confederate left flank. Starting about dawn on July 21, one Union division started a diversionary attack on the Stone Bridge on the Confederate left and two other divisions demonstrated against the Confederate center and right, while two other divisions marched around the Confederate left flank to launch an attack on the Confederate rear. The Union flanking column was spotted and Confederate reinforcements were rushed to Matthew's Hill but were driven back to
Henry House Hill Henry House Hill is a location near Bull Run in Virginia. Named for the house of the Henry family that sits atop it, the hill begins near the road of Centreville, Virginia, after Gainesville, Virginia, to the today's U.S. Route 29, the Warrenton ...
. A new Confederate defensive line, using brigades from Johnston's army, was formed along the hill, where they held against repeated Union attacks during the afternoon. A Confederate attack on the Union left flank in the late afternoon forced McDowell to retreat back to the defenses of Washington, D.C.


Aftermath

Davis arrived on the Manassas battlefield soon after the battle ended. Although he attempted to organize a pursuit of the Union army, he was convinced that the Confederate armies were too disorganized to mount an effective pursuit. The dispute between Beauregard and Davis over who was responsible for the failed pursuit resulted in Beauregard's transfer to the Western Theater. In October, Johnston's and Beauregard's commands were merged into the Department of Northern Virginia, with the combined army retaining the name "Army of the Potomac". Following First Bull Run, McDowell retreated to Centreville and set up a rearguard. At a council of war held after sunset, a majority of officers urged a retreat, which started that night. In August, the Department of Northeastern Virginia was merged with other departments in Maryland to form the Department of the Potomac, commanded by George C. McClellan. McDowell was demoted to commanding a division. Patterson was blamed for allowing Johnston to reinforce Beauregard and was also relieved of command.Gottfried, p 76.


See also

* Troop engagements of the American Civil War, 1861 *
List of costliest American Civil War land battles This is a list of the costliest land battles of the American Civil War, measured by casualties (killed, wounded, captured, and missing) on both sides. Highest casualty battles See also * List of American Civil War battles * Timeline of events l ...
*
Origins of the American Civil War Historians who debate the origins of the American Civil War focus on the reasons that seven Southern states (followed by four other states after the onset of the war) declared their secession from the United States (the Union) and united to ...
*
Battle of Fort Sumter The Battle of Fort Sumter (April 12–13, 1861) was the bombardment of Fort Sumter near Charleston, South Carolina by the South Carolina militia. It ended with the surrender by the United States Army, beginning the American Civil War. Follo ...
*
Bull Run Mountains The Bull Run Mountains are a mountain range of the Blue Ridge Mountains in northern Virginia in the United States. Located approximately east of the main chain, across the Loudoun Valley. The Bull Run Mountains, together with Catoctin Mounta ...
*
Commemoration of the American Civil War on postage stamps The Commemoration of the American Civil War on postage stamps concerns both the actual stamps and covers used during the American Civil War, and the later postage celebrations. The latter include commemorative stamp issues devoted to the actual ...


Notes


References

* Davis, William C. ''Battle at Bull Run: A History of the First Major Campaign of the Civil War''. Garden City, New York: Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1977. * Detzer, David. ''Donnybrook: The Battle of Bull Run, 1861''. New York: Harcourt, Inc., 2004. . * Gimbel, Gary. "The End of Innocence: The Battle of Falling Waters", in ''Blue & Gray'', Volume XXII, number 4 (Fall 2005). * Gottfried, Bradley G. ''The Maps of First Bull Run: An Atlas of the First Bull Run (Manassas) Campaign, including the Battle of Ball's Bluff, June – October 1861''. New York: Savas Beatie, 2009. . * Robertson, William G. "First Manassas, Virginia (VA005), Prince William County, July 21, 1861", in ''The Civil War Battlefield Guide'', 2nd edition, edited by Francis H. Kennedy. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1998. .


Memoirs and primary sources

* Longstreet, James. ''From Manassas to Appomattox: Memoirs of the Civil War in America''. New York: Da Capo Press, 1992. . First published in 1896 by J. B. Lippincott and Co. * U.S. War Department
''The War of the Rebellion''
''a Compilation of the
Official Records The ''Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies in the War of the Rebellion'', commonly known as the ''Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies'' or Official Records (OR or ORs), is the most extensive collection of Americ ...
of the Union and Confederate Armies''. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1880–1901


External links


Battle of Bull Run
photos, history articles, and battlefield news (
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 ...
)
"Map of the Battles of Bull Run, 1861"
prepared by Army engineer, National Archives and Records Administration, at
World Digital Library The World Digital Library (WDL) is an international digital library operated by UNESCO and the United States Library of Congress. The WDL has stated that its mission is to promote international and intercultural understanding, expand the volume ...

Manassas National Battlefield Park website


* ttp://www.sonofthesouth.net/leefoundation/civil-war/1861/august/battle-bull-run.htm ''Harper's Weekly'' 1861 Report on the Battle of Bull Run
Civil War Home website on First Bull Run



FirstBullRun.co.uk
*


''Map of the Battles of Bull Run Near Manassas''
Solomon Bamberger. Zoomable high-resolution map.
Newspaper coverage of the First Battle of Bull Run
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:First Battle Of Bull Run Bull Run I Bull Run I Prince William County in the American Civil War Fairfax County in the American Civil War Bull Run I United States Marine Corps in the 18th and 19th centuries 1861 in the American Civil War 1861 in Virginia