Bull Run Chaos: Civil War's First Real Battle
Union General Irvin McDowell marched 35,000 raw recruits toward Manassas Junction, expecting to scatter the Confederate army and end the rebellion in an afternoon. Washington socialites packed picnic baskets and rode out in carriages to watch. The battle started well for the Union, but Confederate reinforcements under Joseph Johnston arrived by railroad, the first time trains had been used to deliver troops to a battlefield. General Thomas Jackson earned the nickname "Stonewall" by holding his brigade firm on Henry House Hill. By late afternoon, a Confederate counterattack triggered a Union rout that sent soldiers and spectators fleeing back to Washington in a tangled, panicked mass. Both sides realized the war would be long and bloody.
July 21, 1861
165 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on July 21
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