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{{short description|First major land battle of the American Civil War}}
{{pp-
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2013}}
{{Infobox military conflict
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[[File:ATLAS OR NORTHEASTERN VIRGINIA MAP 1.jpg|thumb|Northeastern Virginia (1861)]]
The '''First Battle of Bull Run''', called the '''Battle of First Manassas'''<ref name=1stmanassas>[http://www.nps.gov/mana/learn/historyculture/first-manassas.htm National Park Service] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181012145754/https://www.nps.gov/mana/learn/historyculture/first-manassas.htm |date=October 12, 2018 }}.</ref> by [[Confederate States Army|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, Virginia|Manassas]] and about thirty miles west-southwest of [[Washington, D.C.]] The [[Union Army]] 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 [[Battle of Fort Sumter|Fort Sumter]], the northern public clamored for a march against the Confederate capital of [[Richmond, Virginia]], which was expected to bring an early end to the Confederacy. Yielding to political pressure, [[Brigadier general (United States)|Brigadier General]] [[Irvin McDowell]] led his unseasoned Union Army across [[Bull Run (Occoquan River)|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
Confederate reinforcements under Brigadier General [[Joseph E. Johnston]] arrived from the [[Shenandoah Valley]] by railroad, and the course of the battle quickly changed. A [[Stonewall Brigade|brigade of Virginians]] under a relatively unknown brigadier general from the [[Virginia Military Institute]], [[Stonewall Jackson|Thomas J. Jackson]], stood its ground, which resulted in Jackson receiving his famous nickname, "Stonewall". The Confederates launched 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.
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File:President-Jefferson-Davis.jpg|Pres.<br />[[Jefferson Davis]],<br />'''CSA'''
</gallery>
|}On December 20, 1860, [[South Carolina in the American Civil War|South Carolina]] was the first of seven Southern States to declare [[secession
[[File:Winfield Scott by Fredricks, 1862.jpg|thumb|upright|right|Lt. Gen. [[Winfield Scott]], General in Chief, '''USA''']]
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===Intelligence===
During the previous year, U.S. Army captain [[Thomas Jordan (general)|Thomas Jordan]] set up a pro-Southern spy network in [[Washington, D.C.
=== McDowell's plan and initial movements in the Manassas Campaign ===
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After two days of marching slowly in the sweltering heat, the Union army was allowed to rest in [[Centreville, Virginia|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 [[flanking maneuver|outflank]] Beauregard, who had drawn up his lines along Bull Run. On July 18, the Union commander sent a [[division (military)|division]] under Brig. Gen. [[Daniel Tyler]] to pass on the Confederate right (southeast) flank. Tyler was drawn into a [[Battle of Blackburn's Ford|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 the wishes of the General-in-Chief, in keeping General Johnston's force at Winchester."<ref>Ballard, p. 9.</ref>
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
of 22,000. Another reason for quick action 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.<ref>Ballard, p. 10.</ref>
Becoming more frustrated, McDowell resolved to attack the Confederate left (northwest) flank instead. He planned to attack with Brig. Gen. [[Daniel Tyler]]'s division at the [[Stone Bridge (Manassas)|Stone Bridge]] on the [[U.S. Route 29|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 [[Colonel (United States)|Col.]] [[Israel B. Richardson]] (Tyler's Division) would harass 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,
===Prelude to battle===
On July 19–20, significant reinforcements bolstered the Confederate lines behind Bull Run. Johnston arrived with all of his army
McDowell was getting contradictory information from his intelligence agents, so he called for the balloon [[Enterprise (balloon)|''Enterprise'']], which was being demonstrated by Prof. [[Thaddeus S. C. Lowe]] in Washington, to perform aerial reconnaissance.
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*1st Division of Brig. Gen. [[Daniel Tyler]] the largest in the army, contained four brigades, led by Brig. Gen. [[Robert C. Schenck]], Col. [[Erasmus D. Keyes]], Col. [[William T. Sherman]], and Col. [[Israel B. Richardson]];
*2nd Division of Col. [[David Hunter]] of two brigades. These were led by Cols. [[Andrew Porter (Civil War general)|Andrew Porter]] and [[Ambrose E. Burnside]];
*3rd Division of Col. [[Samuel P. Heintzelman]] included
*4th Division of Brig. Gen. [[Theodore Runyon]] without brigade organization and ''not engaged'', contained seven regiments of New Jersey and one regiment of New York volunteer infantries;
*5th Division of Col. [[Dixon S. Miles]] included
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 the Shenandoah Valley.
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| 289||5,884||5,917||6,207
|-
! scope=row | [[21st New York Infantry Regiment|Twenty-first New York Volunteers]]
| 37||684||707||745
|-
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! Men
|-
! scope=row | Bvt. Maj. Gen.
| 322||6,637||11||307||7||251
|-
! scope=row | Maj. Gen.
| 322||6,410||3||74||||
|-
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| 3 || 261 || 2,356 || || || ||
|-
! scope=row | [[7th Louisiana Infantry Regiment (Confederate)|Seventh Louisiana]]
| || 44 || 773 || || || ||
|-
! scope=row | [[8th Louisiana Infantry Regiment (Confederate)|Eighth Louisiana]]
| || 43 || 803 || || || ||
|-
! scope=row | [[Hampton's Legion]]
| || 27 || 627 || || || ||
|-
! scope=row | [[13th Virginia Infantry Regiment|Thirteenth Virginia]]
| || || || 34 || 642 || ||
|-
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| || || || 38 || 545 || ||
|-
! scope=row | [[Washignton Artillery|Washington (Louisiana) Artillery]]
| || || || || || 19 || 201
|-
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[[File:First Bull Run (Manassas) July 21 1000.png|thumb|upright=1.35|Situation morning, July 21]]
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, Virginia|Sudley Springs]] to get around the Confederates' left. Tyler's division (about 8,000) marched directly toward 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.<ref>Beatie, pp. 285–88; Esposito, text for Map 21; Rafuse, "First Battle of Bull Run", p. 312.</ref>
[[File:Virginia, Bull Run. Ruins of Stone Bridge - NARA - 533281.jpg|left|thumb|305x305px|Ruins of the Stone Bridge, photographed by [[George N. Barnard]]
At 5:15 a.m., Richardson's brigade fired 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 (military)|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 the attack, Ewell, at Union Mills Ford, was simply ordered to "hold ... in readiness to advance at a moment's notice". Brig. Gen. [[David Rumph Jones|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.<ref>Eicher, p. 94; Esposito, Map 22.</ref>
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All that stood in the path of the 20,000 Union soldiers converging on the Confederate left flank were Col. [[Nathan George Evans|Nathan "Shanks" Evans]] and his reduced brigade of 1,100 men.<ref name=Rafuse312>Rafuse, "First Battle of Bull Run", p. 312.</ref> Evans had moved some of his men to intercept 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 {{convert|8|mi|km}} southwest on Signal Hill. In the first use of [[Wig-Wag Signaling|wig-wag semaphore signaling]] in combat, Alexander sent the message "Look out for your left, your position is turned."<ref>Brown, pp. 43–45; Alexander, pp. 50–51. Alexander recalls that the signal was "You are flanked."</ref> 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.<ref name=Rafuse312 />
The Confederate delaying action on Matthews Hill included a spoiling attack launched by [[Major (rank)|Major]] [[Roberdeau Wheat]]'s 1st Louisiana Special Battalion, "[[Louisiana Tigers|Wheat's Tigers]]". After Wheat's command was thrown back, and Wheat seriously wounded, Evans received reinforcement from two other brigades under Brig. Gen. [[Barnard Elliott Bee, Jr.|Barnard Bee]] and Col. [[Francis S. Bartow]], bringing the force on the flank to 2,800 men.<ref name=Rafuse312 /> 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 the stone bridge around 10:00 a.m.,<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://ironbrigader.com/2015/07/20/william-t-shermans-report-brigades-action-battle-bull-run/ |title=William T. Sherman's Report on His Brigade's Action at the First Battle of Bull Run |website=Ironbrigader.com |access-date=October 8, 2020 |archive-date=October 9, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201009031449/https://ironbrigader.com/2015/07/20/william-t-shermans-report-brigades-action-battle-bull-run/ |url-status=live }}</ref> 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.<ref>Rafuse, "First Battle of Bull Run", pp. 312–13; Rafuse, ''A Single Grand Victory
(''Further map details, see:'' '''[[:File:First Battle of Bull Run Map4.jpg|Additional Map 4]]''', '''[[:File:First Battle of Bull Run Map5.jpg|Additional Map 5]]''', '''[[:File:First Battle of Bull Run Map6.jpg|Additional Map 6]]''' and '''[[:File:First Battle of Bull Run Map7.jpg|Additional Map 7]]'''.)
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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 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.<ref>Detzer, p. 357; Davis, pp. 204–05.</ref>
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]], is said to have replied, "Then, Sir, we will give them the bayonet."<ref>Robertson, p. 264.</ref> 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."<ref>Freeman, vol. 1, p. 82; Robertson, p. 264. McPherson, p. 342, reports the quotation after "stone wall" as being "Rally around the Virginians!"</ref> This exclamation is often held to be the source for Jackson's (and his [[Stonewall Brigade|brigade's]]) nickname, "Stonewall". Bee was shot through the stomach shortly afterwards and died 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 was meant to be pejorative: "Look at Jackson standing there like a stone wall!"<ref>See, for instance, McPherson, p. 342. There are additional controversies about what Bee said and whether he said anything at all. See Freeman, vol. 1, pp. 733–34.</ref> 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 and defilade|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 Farquhar Barry|William F. Barry]], to mistake them for Union troops and to order Griffin not to fire on them.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.historynet.com/battle-of-bull-run/ |title=Battle Of Bull Run |website=Historynet.com |access-date=March 1, 2022 |archive-date=March 1, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220301101018/https://www.historynet.com/battle-of-bull-run/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Close range volleys from the 33rd Virginia followed by Stuart's cavalry attack against the flank of the [[11th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment]] ([[Elmer E. Ellsworth|Ellsworth]]'s Fire [[Zouave]]s), 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, the Confederates were pushed back and they reformed and the guns changed hands several times.<ref>Eicher, pp. 96–98; Esposito, Map 23; Rafuse, "First Battle of Bull Run", pp. 314–15; McPherson, pp. 342–44.</ref>
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|-
| First U. S. Artillery, Company I<br />(six 10-pounder Parrots)
| Captain [[James B. Ricketts|Ricketts]]
| 6 || || 6
| None saved
|-
| Second U. S. Artillery, Company D
| Captain [[Richard Arnold (general)|Arnold]]
| 2 || 2 || 4
| None saved
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|-
| Fifth S. Artillery [Company D],<br />(two 10-pounder Parrotts,<br />two 6-pounders (old),<br />two 12-pounder howitzers).
| Captain [[Charles Griffin|Griffin]]
| 1 || 4 || 5
| One 10-pounder saved
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{{further|Turning point of the American Civil War#Confederate victory at Bull Run (July 1861)}}
==="
The name of the battle has caused controversy since 1861. The Union Army frequently named battles after significant rivers and creeks that played a role in the fighting; the Confederates generally used the names of nearby towns or farms. The [[U.S. National Park Service]] uses the Confederate name for its [[Manassas National Battlefield Park|national battlefield park]], but the Union name (Bull Run) also has widespread currency in popular literature.<ref>McPherson, p. 346, n. 7. McPherson's popular one-volume history of the war uses the two names interchangeably because he states that "neither name has any intrinsic superiority over the other."</ref>
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*Gottfried, Bradley M. ''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''. El Dorado Hills, CA: Savas Beatie, 2009. {{ISBN|978-1-932714-60-9}}.
*Hankinson, Alan. ''First Bull Run 1861: The South's First Victory''. Osprey Campaign Series #10. London: Osprey Publishing, 1991. {{ISBN|1-85532-133-5}}.
*Hennessy, John J. ''The First Battle of Manassas: An End to Innocence, July
*Hennessy, John, Ethan Rafuse, and Harry Smeltzer. "Historians' Forum: The First Battle of Bull Run." ''Civil War History'' 57#2 (June 2011): 106–120.
*Hines, Blaikie. ''The Battle of First Bull Run, Manassas Campaign – July 16–22, 1861: An Illustrated Atlas and Battlefield Guide.'' Maine: American Patriot Press, 2011. {{ISBN|978-1-61364-129-3}}.
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{{Commons category}}
{{commons category|Manassas National Battlefield Park}}
*[http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/bullrun.html Battle of Bull Run]: [http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/firstmanassas/first-manassas-maps/first-manassas-july-21.html '''Battle maps'''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150719102657/http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/firstmanassas/first-manassas-maps/first-manassas-july-21.html |date=July 19, 2015 }}, photos, history articles, and battlefield news ([[Civil War Trust]])
*[http://www.wdl.org/en/item/2743/ "Map of the Battles of Bull Run, 1861"], prepared by Army engineer, National Archives and
*[http://www.nps.gov/mana Manassas National Battlefield Park website]
*[http://www.nps.gov/history/NR/twhp/wwwlps/lessons/12manassas/12manassas.htm ''First Battle of Manassas: An End to Innocence'', a National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP) lesson plan]
*[http://www.sonofthesouth.net/leefoundation/civil-war/1861/august/battle-bull-run.htm ''Harper's Weekly'' 1861 Report on the Battle of Bull Run]
*[http://www.civilwarhome.com/1manassa.htm Civil War Home website on First Bull Run]
*[http://www.civilwaranimated.com/BullRunAnimation.html Animated history of the First Battle of Bull Run] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110603055140/http://civilwaranimated.com/BullRunAnimation.html |date=June 3, 2011 }}
*[http://www.firstbullrun.co.uk FirstBullRun.co.uk]
*{{librivox book | title=The First Battle of Bull Run | author=Pierre Gustave Toutant BEAUREGARD}}
*[http://thomaslegion.net/manassasbullrunbattlesoffirstandsecondmanassasfirstandsecondbullrun.html First Manassas Campaign with Official Records and Reports]
*[http://www.wdl.org/en/item/2743/ ''Map of the Battles of Bull Run Near Manassas'']. Solomon Bamberger. Zoomable high-resolution map.
*[http://www.newsinhistory.com/feature/confederates-rout-union-army-first-battle-bull-runmanassas Newspaper coverage of the First Battle of Bull Run] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429014137/http://www.newsinhistory.com/feature/confederates-rout-union-army-first-battle-bull-runmanassas |date=April 29, 2011 }}
*{{webarchive |url=http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20110505035551/http://www.manassascivilwar.org/home.aspx |title=Manassas Civil War 150th Anniversary July 21–24, 2011 |date=2011-05-05}}
*{{Wikisource-inline|list=
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