Overview
In 1862, Union leaders tried to capture Richmond, Virginia, and end the Civil War quickly. Major General George McClellan advanced toward Richmond during the Peninsula Campaign but eventually retreated after the Seven Days Battles. President Abraham Lincoln appointed General John Pope to command the newly created Army of Virginia. Confederate General Robert E. Lee then took the offensive before Pope could unite with McClellan.
Lee sent Major General Thomas J. Jackson toward Gordonsville, Virginia, and later reinforced him. On August 27, 1862, Jackson moved around Pope’s right flank and captured the Union supply depot at Manassas Junction. Pope spent the following day searching for Jackson. Meanwhile, Jackson concealed his soldiers behind an unfinished railroad grade along Stony Ridge and waited for General James Longstreet to arrive.
Late on August 28, General Rufus King’s division marched east along the Warrenton Turnpike. General John Gibbon noticed Confederate artillery near John Brawner’s farm and sent the 2nd Wisconsin Regiment forward to attack the guns. Instead, the regiment encountered Jackson’s Stonewall Brigade. Despite being outnumbered at first, the Wisconsin soldiers held their position.
Gibbon reinforced the 2nd Wisconsin with the 19th Indiana and the 6th and 7th Wisconsin regiments. Jackson also sent more Confederate soldiers into the fighting. When a gap developed between the 6th and 7th Wisconsin, General Abner Doubleday sent nearly 1,000 Union troops to close it.
Union and Confederate soldiers exchanged fire for more than two hours, often at ranges of only 30 to 100 yards. The fighting continued after darkness fell as soldiers fired at enemy musket flashes. About one-third of the soldiers engaged were killed or wounded.
The battle ended in a stalemate. During the night, Union forces withdrew and joined Pope at Manassas Junction. They took part in the Second Battle of Bull Run the next day.
Essential Facts
- Also Known As: Battle of Groveton.
- Date: August 28, 1862.
- Location: Prince William County, Virginia.
- Participants: The United States of America (USA) and the Confederate States of America (CSA).
- USA Commanders: John Gibbon, Abner Doubleday, Rufus King.
- CSA Commanders: Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson.
- Who Won: The outcome of the Battle of Brawner’s Farm was inconclusive.
- Campaign: Northern Virginia Campaign.
- Era: Civil War, July–December, 1862.
Statistics
United States of America
- Casualties: Approximately 1,100.
- Forces Engaged: 2nd Brigade and 3rd Brigade of the 1st Division, 3rd Corps, Army of Virginia.
- Troop Strength: Roughly 2,800.
Confederate States of America
- Casualties: Approximately 1,100.
- Forces Engaged: Winder’s Brigade, also known as the Stonewall Brigade, of Jackson’s Division, Left Wing, Army of Northern Virginia.
- Troop Strength: Roughly 3,000.
Key Details
- Although relatively unheralded, the Battle of Brawner’s Farm was one of the bloodiest conflicts of the Civil War.
- Fully one-third of the soldiers engaged during the Battle of Brawner’s Farm were killed or wounded.
- Brigadier General John Gibbon’s brigade (later famously known as the Iron Brigade) suffered nearly 800 casualties at the Battle of Brawner’s Farm.
- The renowned Stonewall Brigade sustained a forty percent casualty rate, losing 340 of 800 men engaged at the Battle of Brawner’s Farm.
- After the fighting at the Battle of Brawner’s Farm, the Federals withdrew to join forces with General John Pope at Manassas Junction in time to take part in the larger clash at the Second Battle of Bull Run the next day.
Significance
The Battle of Brawner’s Farm is important to American History because it was one of the bloodiest engagements of the Civil War and directly preceded the Second Battle of Bull Run. About one-third of the soldiers engaged were killed or wounded. John Gibbon’s brigade, later known as the “Iron Brigade,” suffered nearly 800 casualties, while the Stonewall Brigade lost about 40% of its men. Although the battle ended in a stalemate, Union forces withdrew during the night and joined General John Pope at Manassas Junction, where they took part in the Second Battle of Bull Run the next day.
History
In 1862, Union leaders attempted to bring a quick ending to the American Civil War by capturing the Confederate capital at Richmond, Virginia. On March 17, Major General George McClellan began moving the 50,000 men of the Army of the Potomac toward Richmond during the Peninsula Campaign. By June, McClellan reached the outskirts of the Confederate capital but ultimately retreated after losing a series of encounters with General Robert E. Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia, collectively known as the Seven Days Battles.
Lee Becomes the Aggressor
Dissatisfied with McClellan’s performance, President Abraham Lincoln appointed Major General John Pope to command the newly created Army of Virginia. Sensing that McClellan now posed little threat to Richmond, Confederate General Robert E. Lee, took the offensive, before Pope’s army could unite with McClellan’s retreating forces.
On July 13, 1862, Lee sent 12,000 Confederate troops under the command of Major General Thomas J. Jackson to secure Confederate railroad links with the Shenandoah Valley near Gordonsville, Virginia. Later that month, he deployed 12,000 more men to support Jackson. Although outnumbered nearly 2 to 1, Jackson determined in early August that he now had enough strength to order isolated attacks on Pope’s army. With McClellan’s army in full retreat, Lee dispatched Major General James Longstreet and 30,000 additional troops to support Jackson on August 13, and Lee took command of the offensive against Pope.
Pope in Search of Jackson
Lee boldly sent Jackson on a march that outflanked Pope’s right-wing, capturing the Union supply depot at Manassas Junction on August 27, 1862. With Jackson now positioned between the Army of Virginia and Washington, Pope had to turn his attention away from Lee. Pope spent the next day ordering a series of futile marches and counter-marches in search of Jackson, who seemed to have vanished.
Unbeknownst to Pope, by the morning of August 28, Jackson’s soldiers had hunkered down behind an unfinished railroad grade along Stony Ridge, which paralleled the Warrenton Turnpike in Prince William County, between Groveton and Gainesville, Virginia. Concealed behind the railroad embankment, Jackson monitored the turnpike while awaiting Longstreet’s forces.
Brawner’s Farm Battle
As Jackson’s men laid in wait late on the afternoon of August 28, Brigadier General Rufus King’s 1st Division, comprising four brigades, came into sight marching east along the Warrenton Turnpike. Brigadier General John P. Hatch’s 1st Brigade led the way, followed by Brigadier General John Gibbon’s 3rd Brigade, Brigadier General Abner Doubleday’s 2nd Brigade, and Brigadier General Marsena Patrick’s 4th Brigade. King, who suffered from epilepsy, was traveling in an ambulance after having suffered a seizure.
As King’s soldiers marched by, Jackson readied his artillery. At roughly 5:45 p.m., Gibbon’s brigade of green volunteers from Wisconsin and Indiana neared John Brawner’s farm along the turnpike. Looking across an open field, Gibbon noticed some men on horses to his north. Wondering if they were Confederate cavalry, Gibbon left the road to investigate. He discovered Jackson’s cannoneers preparing to bombard his troops. Within minutes, two Confederate batteries opened fire on the unsuspecting Union soldiers.
Iron Brigade Meets the Stonewall Brigade
Gibbon quickly ordered his brigade to take cover on the north side of the road. Convinced that the Confederate guns belonged to J. E. B. Stuart’s cavalry, Gibbon ordered the 2nd Wisconsin (his only regiment that had previously seen combat) to form a skirmish line and advance across the field to silence the Confederate batteries. As they crested a ridge on the other side of the field, the shocked Badgers discovered an entire Confederate infantry brigade advancing toward them. Unbeknownst to the Federals, they were about to come face-to-face with perhaps the most formidable unit in the Confederate Army, the famous Stonewall Brigade, now commanded by Colonel William S.H. Baylor.
Although outnumbered roughly 800 to 300, the stubborn Westerners held their ground. When the Confederates threatened to envelop their left flank, Gibbon deployed the 19th Indiana to anchor his line. Jackson countered by leading 800 to 1,000 fresh Confederates into the fray. Gibbon then brought forth the 6th and 7th Wisconsin to bolster his right flank. By the time Gibbon deployed all of his soldiers, his line stretched over a mile long.
Poor communications, created by serious injuries to two of Jackson’s three divisional commanders, hindered the Confederate general’s efforts to bring up more troops. A Union musket round shattered Major General Richard Ewell’s kneecap, causing doctors later to amputate his leg. Union soldiers shot Brigadier General William B. Taliaferro (pronounced ‘Tolliver’) three times during the battle, limiting his effectiveness.
As the struggle continued toward darkness, an opening unfolded between the 6th and 7th Wisconsin. Recognizing the potential for disaster, General Doubleday deployed nearly 1,000 reinforcements from his brigade to plug the gap.
For over two hours, stubborn Confederates and Federals fired at each other, often no farther than 30 to 100 yards apart. Even the onset of nightfall did not end the carnage. Unable to see their foes, dogged soldiers on both sides continued to fire at each other’s musket flashes in the dark. Eventually, the plaintive cries of the wounded replaced the roar of musketry, and soldiers from each side eerily crept forward with lamps to gather their dead and wounded.
Outcome
Although relatively unheralded, the Battle of Brawner’s Farm was one of the bloodiest conflicts of the Civil War. Fully one-third of the soldiers engaged on the evening of August 28 were killed or wounded. Gibbon’s brigade, later famously known as the Iron Brigade, suffered nearly 800 casualties. The 2nd Wisconsin took the brunt of it, losing 276 of the 430 soldiers who marched into battle.
On the other side, the renowned Stonewall Brigade sustained a forty percent casualty rate, losing 340 of 800 men. The 21st Georgia lost 184 of 242 men who took the field, a frightful seventy-six percent killed or wounded.
During the night, the Federals withdrew to join forces with General Pope at Manassas Junction in time to take part in the larger clash at the Second Battle of Bull Run the next day.
Timeline
- 1862, March 17 — George McClellan moved 50,000 soldiers of the Army of the Potomac toward Richmond during the Peninsula Campaign.
- 1862, June — McClellan reached the outskirts of Richmond but later retreated after the Seven Days Battles.
- 1862, July 13 — Robert E. Lee sent 12,000 Confederate soldiers under Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson toward Gordonsville, Virginia.
- 1862, July — Lee sent another 12,000 soldiers to reinforce Jackson.
- 1862, August — Jackson determined that he had enough troops to attack isolated portions of John Pope’s army.
- 1862, August 13 — Lee sent James Longstreet and 30,000 additional soldiers to support Jackson and took command of the offensive against Pope.
- 1862, August 27 — Jackson moved around Pope’s right flank and captured the Union supply depot at Manassas Junction.
- 1862, August 28
- Jackson concealed his soldiers along Stony Ridge while waiting for Longstreet’s forces.
- Rufus King’s 1st Division marched east along the Warrenton Turnpike and approached Jackson’s position.
- Confederate artillery opened fire on John Gibbon’s troops near Brawner’s farm.
- The 2nd Wisconsin advanced against Confederate artillery and encountered the Stonewall Brigade.
- Gibbon reinforced his line with the 19th Indiana and the 6th and 7th Wisconsin regiments.
- Doubleday sent nearly 1,000 soldiers forward to close a gap between the 6th and 7th Wisconsin.
- Union and Confederate soldiers fought for more than two hours, continuing after darkness fell.
- The Battle of Brawner’s Farm ended in a stalemate, and Union forces withdrew toward Manassas Junction.
- Union forces joined Pope and took part in the Second Battle of Bull Run.
AP US History
Definition
Battle of Brawner’s Farm (1862) — The Battle of Brawner’s Farm was fought on August 28, 1862, during the Northern Virginia Campaign. Confederate General Thomas J. Jackson attacked Union troops marching along the Warrenton Turnpike near Groveton, Virginia. John Gibbon sent the 2nd Wisconsin against Confederate artillery, leading to a fierce fight with the Stonewall Brigade. Reinforcements extended the battle into darkness, and both sides suffered heavy casualties. The battle ended in a stalemate, and Union forces withdrew toward Manassas Junction before the Second Battle of Bull Run.
Alignment
The Battle of Brawner’s Farm is part of the following AP US History sections:
