Second Battle of Bull Run
by Staff EditorThe second battle of Bull Run raged on for a two day period from August 28th to August 30th in 1862 during the American Civil War. Known as the 2nd Manassas to the North, the second battle of Bull Run was significantly larger than the first, but it ended the same. It resulted in success for the South under the leadership of General Robert E. Lee, and in turn a devastating loss for the North.
President Abraham Lincoln and his cabinet decided to place John Pope as the new general for his success in the west. They then decided that a major battle needed to be won and devised a plan to unite several major forces of the Union Army. John Pope’s troops and George P. McClellan’s were supposed to meet up in Alexandria totaling their forces to more than a combined 180,000 men. However, they were unaware of General Lee’s threatening position and ability to prevent such a merge.
The Confederate Army’s Major General Stonewall Jackson had recently defeated Union Major General Nathaniel Banks at Cedar Mountain on August 9th. In fear of the potential combination of the Northern forces, General Lee sent 30,000 men, under the control of General James Longstreet, to reinforce Jackson’s troops. Jackson was then ordered to attack Pope’s camp at the Manassas Junction. On August 26th Jackson raided Pope’s headquarters capturing and burning large amounts of the Union’s supplies. In the mean time Pope was organizing his troops at Rappahannock River. As a result, Pope quickly turned around to corner in Jackson and his men on August 27th, while Union General-in-Chief Henry W. Halleck and his army headed against the Manassas Junction from the east. With Pope coming from the west, Jackson dropped his army to Warrenton Turnpike.
The battle of second Bull Run thus began on August 28th when Jackson began holding off Pope’s advances before Longstreet and his reinforcements could arrive. Jackson focused on the Federal’s left flank. Heavy losses were suffered on both sides as the battle waged on well into the night before the North withdrew their forces. By the end of that night Pope had believed he would be able capture Jackson well before Longstreet’s men were able to reach the line, and thus be victorious in the 2nd battle of Bull Run.
On August 29th the second battle of Bull Run resumed with Federal attacks being launched on the Confederates. Pope’s assaults were driving them on the offensive by late afternoon as the casualties on both side continued to be heavy. During Pope’s successful attacks, Longstreet’s arrival into the 2nd battle of Bull Run went unnoticed.
The following day of the 2nd Manassas, Jackson decided to pull back his forward positions to the line, by doing this Pope viewed him as retreating. Thus, Pope went fast ahead pressing the line without realizing he left his whole left flank unprotected to Longstreet’s fresh men. While Pope was busy with Jackson, Lee ordered Longstreet’s men to leave the line and assault the unguarded left flank. Jackson proceeded to fiercely hold the line while Longstreet trampled the left flank. Upon all this Pope and his men were sent back toward Bull Run.
The 2nd battle of Bull Run, or the 2nd Manassas, ended with the Confederate Army defeating the Union forces even while being outnumbered by 20,000 men in Northern Virginia. This once again forced the Union to retreat back toward Washington. However, this time much more organized than the fleeing of McDowell’s men and the first Bull Run. The loss of the second battle of Bull Run led to Pope being relieved of his duties. It also left in question the North’s loyalty to one another. McClellan’s men never met up with Pope’s men as was planned, and there were also troops in the nearby distance, under the command of Porter and Banks, who stood idle.
