ON THIS DAY ·
Battle of Wilson’s Creek
10 Aug 1861 — Nathaniel Lyon is killed while fighting to keep Missouri from seceding, becoming the first Union general to die in the war. Missouri remains in the Union, but four years of guerrilla war follow there. The hatched belt on the map shows that conflict.
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The moment in context
The road to Richmond seemed to offer a quick way to restore the Union. In July 1861 inexperienced Union volunteers advanced toward the Confederate capital and met an equally inexperienced enemy at Bull Run. Confederate reinforcements arrived by railroad; the Union line broke, and the retreat became disorderly. The battle changed little territory. It changed what Lincoln’s government had to prepare for.
From First Battle of Bull Run, chapter 4 of The American Civil War, 1840–1877 (JUL 1861).
The place: Battle of Wilson’s Creek — map and full story →
Teach this in 5 minutes
- Why it happened — Ninety-day thinking. Expectations of a quick war rested on comforting views of the enemy. Some Northerners believed secession was a planter conspiracy that would…
- The turn — Bull Run, 21 July 1861. The outcome at Bull Run on 21 July 1861 had effects beyond the field. Defeat shook Northern complacency; victory gave Confederates confidence and…
- What it changed — McClellan builds the weapon. McClellan spent the autumn turning volunteers into the Army of the Potomac, drilling and equipping them. The soldiers became devoted to the young…
Then ask the room: The Union had great advantages on paper. Why might European observers nevertheless have expected the Confederacy to win? The argued answer is on the chapter page →
The atlas that shows it
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