Second Battle of Manassas - Civil War Second Battle of Manassas

Second Battle of Manassas - Civil War Second Battle of Manassas Second Battle of Manassas - Conflict Dates: The Second Battle of Manassas was fought August 28-30, 1862, during the American Civil War. Armies Commanders Union Major General John Pope70,000 men Confederate General Robert E. Lee55,000 men Second Battle of Manassas - Background: With the collapse of Major General George B. McClellans Peninsula Campaign in the summer of 1862, President Abraham Lincoln brought Major General John Pope east to take command of the newly created Army of Virginia. Consisting of three corps led by Major Generals Franz Sigel, Nathaniel Banks, and Irvin McDowell, Popes force was soon augmented by additional units taken from McClellans Army of the Potomac. Tasked with protecting Washington and the Shenandoah Valley, Pope began moving southwest towards Gordonsville, VA. Seeing that Union forces were divided and believing that the timid McClellan posed little threat, Confederate General Robert E. Lee sensed an opportunity to destroy Pope before returning south to finish off the Army of the Potomac. Detaching the left wing of his army, Lee ordered Major General Thomas Stonewall Jackson to move north to Gordonsville to intercept Pope. On August 9, Jackson defeated Banks corps at Cedar Mountain and four days later Lee began moving the other wing of his army, led by Major General James Longstreet, north to join Jackson. Second Battle of Manassas - Jackson on the March: Between August 22 and 25, the two armies squared off across the rain-swollen Rappahannock River, with neither able to force a crossing. During this time, Pope began receiving reinforcements as McClellans men were withdrawn from the Peninsula. Seeking to defeat Pope before the Union commanders force grew much larger, Lee ordered Jackson to take his men and Major General J.E.B. Stuarts cavalry division on a bold flanking march around the Union right. Moving north, then east through Thoroughfare Gap, Jackson severed the Orange Alexandria Railroad at Bristoe Station before capturing the Union supply base at Manassas Junction on August 27. With Jackson in his rear, Pope was forced to fall back from the Rappahannock and reconcentrate near Centreville. Moving northwest from Manassas, Jackson moved through the old First Bull Run battlefield and assumed a defensive position behind an unfinished railroad grade below Stony Ridge on the night of August 27/28. From this position, Jackson had a clear view of the Warrenton Turnpike which ran east to Centreville. Second Battle of Manassas - Fighting Begins: The fighting began at 6:30 PM on August 28 when units belonging to Brigadier General Rufus Kings division were seen moving east on the turnpike. Jackson, who learned earlier in the day that Lee and Longstreet were marching to join him, moved to the attack. Engaging on the Brawner Farm, the fight was largely against the Union brigades of Brigadier Generals John Gibbon and Abner Doubleday. Firing for around two and half hours, both sides took heavy losses until darkness ended the fighting. Pope misinterpreted the battle as Jackson retreating from Centreville and ordered his men to trap the Confederates. Second Battle of Manassas - Assaulting Jackson: Early the next morning, Jackson dispatched some of Stuarts men to direct Longstreets approaching troops into pre-selected positions on his right. Pope, in an effort to destroy Jackson, moved his men to the fight and planned attacks on both Confederate flanks. Believing that Jacksons right flank was near Gainesville, he directed Major General Fitz John Porter to take his V Corps west to attack that position. At the other end of the line, Sigel was assault the Confederate left along the railroad grade. While Porters men marched, Sigels opened the fighting around 7:00 AM. Attacking Major General A.P. Hills men, the Brigadier General Carl Schurzs troops made little progress. While the Union did achieve some local successes, they were often undone by vigorous Confederate counterattacks. Around 1:00 PM, Pope arrived on the field with reinforcements just as Longstreets lead units were moving into position. To the southwest, Porters corps was moving up the Manassas-Gainesville Road and engaged a group of Confederate cavalry. Second Battle of Manassas - Union Confusion: Shortly thereafter, its advance was halted when Porter received a confusing Joint Order from Pope which muddied the situation and did not provide any clear direction. This confusion was worsened by news from McDowells cavalry commander, Brigadier General John Buford, that large numbers of Confederates (Longstreets men) had been spotted in Gainesville that morning. For an unknown reason, McDowell failed to forward this to Pope until that evening. Pope, waiting for Porters attack, continued to launch piecemeal assaults against Jackson and remained unaware that Longstreets men had arrived on the field. At 4:30, Pope sent an explicit order for Porter to attack, but it was not received until 6:30 and the corps commander was not in a position to comply. In anticipation of this attack, Pope threw Major General Philip Kearnys division against Hills lines. In severe fighting, Kearnys men were only repelled after determined Confederate counterattacks. Observing Union movements, Lee decided to attack the Union flank, but was dissuaded by Longstreet who advocated a reconnaissance in force to set up an assault in the morning. Brigadier General John B. Hoods division moved forward along the turnpike and collided with Brigadier General John Hatchs men. Both sides retreated after a sharp fight. Second Battle of Manassas - Longstreet Strikes As darkness fell, Pope finally received McDowells report regarding Longstreet. Falsely believing that Longstreet had arrived to support Jacksons retreat, Pope recalled Porter and began planning a massive assault by V Corps for the next day. Though advised to move cautiously at a council of war the next morning, Pope pushed Porters men, supported by two additional divisions, west down the turnpike. Around noon, they wheeled right and attacked the right end of Jacksons line. Taken under heavy artillery fire the assault breached the Confederate lines but was thrown back by counterattacks. With the failure of Porters attack, Lee and Longstreet moved forward with 25,000 men against the Union left flank. Driving scattered Union troops before them, they only encountered determined resistance at a few points. Realizing the danger, Pope began moving troops to block the attack. With the situation desperate, he succeeded in forming a defensive line along the Manassas-Sudley Road at the foot of Henry House Hill. The battle lost, Pope began a fighting withdraw back towards Centreville around 8:00 PM. Second Battle of Manassas - Aftermath: The Second Battle of Manassas cost Pope 1,716 killed, 8,215 wounded and 3,893 missing, while Lee suffered 1,305 killed and 7,048 wounded. Relieved on September 12, Popes army was incorporated into the Army of the Potomac. Seeking a scapegoat for the defeat, he had Porter court-martialed for his actions on August 29. Found guilty, Porter spent fifteen years working to clear his name. Having won a stunning victory, Lee embarked on his invasion of Maryland a few days later. Selected Sources National Park Service: Manassas National BattlefieldLibrary of Congress: Second Battle of ManassasHistoryNet: Second Battle of Manassas

Battle of Cape Esperance at Guadalcanal

Battle of Cape Esperance at Guadalcanal The Battle of Cape Esperance took place the night of October 11/12, 1942. It was part of the Guadalcanal Campaign of World War II. Background In early August 1942, Allied forces landed on Guadalcanal and succeeded in capturing an airfield that the Japanese were building. Dubbed Henderson Field, Allied aircraft operating from the Guadalcanal soon dominated the sea lanes around the island during daylight hours. As a result, the Japanese were forced to deliver reinforcements to the island at night using destroyers rather than larger, slower troop transports. Dubbed the Tokyo Express by the Allies, Japanese warships would depart bases in the Shortland Islands and make the run to Guadalcanal and back in a single night. In early October, Vice Admiral Gunichi Mikawa planned a major reinforcement convoy for Guadalcanal. Led by Rear Admiral Takatsugu Jojima, the force consisted of six destroyers and two seaplane tenders. In addition, Mikawa ordered Rear Admiral Aritomo Goto to lead a force of three cruisers and two destroyers with orders to shell Henderson Field while Jojimas ships delivered their troops. Departing the Shortlands early on October 11, both forces proceeded down The Slot towards Guadalcanal. While the Japanese were planning their operations, the Allies made plans to reinforce the island as well. Moving to Contact Departing New Caledonia on October 8, ships carrying the US 164th Infantry moved north towards Guadalcanal. To screen this convoy, Vice Admiral Robert Ghormley assigned Task Force 64, commanded by Rear Admiral Norman Hall, to operate near the island. Consisting of the cruisers USS San Francisco, USS Boise, USS Helena, and USS Salt Lake City, TF64 also included the destroyers USS Farenholt, USS Duncan, USS Buchanan, USS McCalla, and USS Laffey. Initially taking station off Rennell Island, Hall moved north on the 11th after receiving reports that Japanese ships had been sited in The Slot. With the fleets in motion, Japanese aircraft attacked Henderson Field during the day, with the goal of preventing Allied aircraft from locating and attacking Jojimas ships. As he moved north, Hall, aware that the Americans had faired badly in previous night battles with the Japanese, crafted a simple battle plan. Ordering his ships to form a column with destroyers at the head and rear, he instructed them to illuminate any targets with their searchlights so that the cruisers could fire accurately. Hall also informed his captains that they were open fire when the enemy was sited rather than waiting for orders. Battle Joined Approaching Cape Hunter on the northwest corner of Guadalcanal, Hall, flying his flag from San Francisco, ordered his cruisers to launch their floatplanes at 10:00 PM. An hour later, San Franciscos floatplane sighted Jojimas force off of Guadalcanal. Expecting more Japanese ships to be sighted, Hall maintained his course northeast, passing to the west of Savo Island. Reversing course at 11:30, some confusion led to the three lead destroyers (Farenholt, Duncan, and Laffey) being out of position. About this time, Gotos ships began appearing on the American radars. Initially believing these contacts to be the out of position destroyers, Hall took no action. As Farenholt and Laffey accelerated to reassume their proper positions, Duncan moved to attack the approaching Japanese ships. At 11:45, Gotos ships were visible to the American lookouts and Helena radioed asking permission to open fire using the general procedure request, Interrogatory Roger (meaning are we clear to act). Hall responded in the affirmative, and his surprise the entire American line opened fire. Aboard his flagship, Aoba, Goto was taken by complete surprise. Over the next few minutes, Aoba was hit more than 40 times by Helena, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, Farenholt, and Laffey. Burning, with many of its guns out of action and Goto dead, Aoba turned to disengage. At 11:47, concerned that he was firing on his own ships, Hall ordered a cease-fire and asked his destroyers to confirm their positions. This done, the American ships resumed firing at 11:51 and pummeled the cruiser Furutaka. Burning from a hit to its torpedo tubes, Furutaka lost power after taking a torpedo from Buchanan. While the cruiser was burning, the Americans shifted their fire to the destroyer Fubuki sinking it. As the battle raged, the cruiser Kinugasa and destroyer Hatsuyuki turned away and missed the brunt of the American attack. Pursuing the fleeing Japanese ships, Boise was nearly hit by torpedoes from Kinugasa at 12:06 AM. Turning on their searchlights to illuminate the Japanese cruiser, Boise and Salt Lake City immediately took fire, with the former taking a hit to its magazine. At 12:20, with the Japanese retreating and his ships disorganized, Hall broke off the action. Later that night, Furutaka sank as a result of battle damage, and Duncan was lost to raging fires. Learning of the bombardment forces crisis, Jojima detached four destroyers to its aid after disembarking his troops. The next day, two of these, Murakumo and Shirayuki, were sunk by aircraft from Henderson Field. Aftermath The Battle of Cape Esperance cost Hall the destroyer Duncan and 163 killed. In addition, Boise and Farenholt were badly damaged. For the Japanese, losses included a cruiser and three destroyers, as well as 341–454 killed. Also, Aoba was badly damaged and out of action until February 1943. The Battle of Cape Esperance was the first Allied triumph over the Japanese in a night battle. A tactical victory for Hall, the engagement had little strategic significance as Jojima was able to deliver his troops. In assessing the battle, many of the American officers felt that chance had played a key role in allowing them to surprise the Japanese. This luck would not hold, and Allied naval forces were badly defeated on November 20, 1942, at the nearby Battle of Tassafaronga. Selected Sources US Naval Historical Center: Battle of Cape EsperanceOrder of Battle: Battle of Cape Esperance