Battle of Thoroughfare Gap facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Battle of Thoroughfare Gap |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the American Civil War | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 United States (Union) |
 CSA (Confederacy) |
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| James B. Ricketts | James Longstreet | ||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
| Union Army of Virginia | Confederate Army of Northern Virginia | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 5,000 | 28,000 | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 100 | |||||||
The Battle of Thoroughfare Gap, also called Chapman's Mill, happened on August 28, 1862. It was a small but important fight during the American Civil War. This battle took place in Fauquier County and Prince William County, Virginia. It was part of the Northern Virginia Campaign.
During the battle, Confederate soldiers led by James Longstreet pushed back Union forces. The Union troops were commanded by James B. Ricketts and Percy Wyndham. The Confederate victory allowed Longstreet's army to join up with Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson's forces. This happened just before the big Second Battle of Bull Run (Second Manassas).
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Why the Battle Happened
On August 26, 1862, Confederate Maj. Gen. Stonewall Jackson led his army through Thoroughfare Gap. He was on his way to attack a Union supply base at Manassas Junction.
The next day, Union Maj. Gen. Irwin McDowell left Warrenton to stop Jackson. To protect his army's side, McDowell sent Brig. Gen. James B. Ricketts and his soldiers to the Gap. Ricketts stopped about 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) east at Gainesville. Meanwhile, Wyndham's cavalry took control of the Gap itself.
Maj. Gen. James Longstreet's Confederate army was following Jackson. They were getting close to the Gap from the west on the evening of August 27.
The Battle Begins
At 9:30 a.m. on August 28, Wyndham's cavalry met Longstreet's lead soldiers. The Union cavalry was trying to cut down trees to block the road on the east side of the Gap. Wyndham quickly sent a message to Ricketts, who was still at Gainesville.
Ricketts's troops moved slowly. By 2 p.m., they had only reached Haymarket, about 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) to the east. By then, Wyndham's cavalry had been forced out of the Gap. Longstreet's Confederates took control of it.
However, the Union still had a good position. There were low hills east of the Gap that were good for defending the road to Gainesville. The Confederates had not yet taken the higher hills to the north and south of the Gap.
Confederate Plan
Longstreet quickly came up with a plan to deal with the Union threat. He wanted to control the high ground on both sides of the Gap. Then, he would attack the Union forces from the side on the eastern ridge.
The 9th Georgia regiment was sent to Chapman's Mill, on the east side of the Gap. Their job was to stop a Union attack by the 11th Pennsylvania regiment. The Pennsylvania soldiers had to clear the trees that Wyndham had cut down earlier. This delay helped the Confederates.
Col. George T. Anderson sent half of his soldiers up the slope north of the Gap. This allowed them to take the high ground. He still had enough men to stop the 11th Pennsylvania.
To the south of the Gap, the 2nd and 20th Georgia regiments raced up the slopes. They were fighting against the 13th Massachusetts regiment. The Georgians won this race and pushed the 13th Massachusetts back down the steep hills.
Union Retreat
With the Gap now firmly under Confederate control, Col. Evander M. Law's soldiers were ordered to move over the ridge north of the Gap. Their goal was to attack the Union right side.
At the same time, Brig. Gen. Cadmus M. Wilcox was sent with three groups of soldiers about 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) north. They went through Hopewell Gap. Their mission was to get behind the Union position and attack them from the rear.
When Law's soldiers came down the eastern side of the mountain, they attacked the Union right. Ricketts sent the 84th New York to stop them, which worked for a short time. However, the 2nd and 20th Georgia regiments were pushing down the slopes to the south. They soon attacked the Union left side.
Ricketts saw that his position was becoming very dangerous. He decided to pull his troops back to Gainesville. He left the Gap to the Confederates before Wilcox could cut off his escape route.
What Happened Next
The Battle of Thoroughfare Gap was small in terms of soldiers lost. Only about 100 soldiers were hurt or killed on both sides combined. However, it had very big consequences for the war.
Ricketts did not fully understand how important it was to keep the two parts of the Confederate army separated. Instead of strongly defending the Gap, which was the easiest way to cross the mountains, he left only cavalry there. He kept his main force a half-day's march away at Gainesville. This job would have been better for his cavalry.
Because Ricketts did not hold the Gap, he lost a big advantage. His small force could have seriously slowed down Longstreet's advance. His failure allowed the two parts of the Confederate army to join together at Manassas. This almost guaranteed that the Union General Pope would be defeated during the Second Battle of Bull Run on August 29.
Protecting the Battlefield
The Thoroughfare Gap Battlefield was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1999. The Civil War Trust (now part of the American Battlefield Trust) and its partners have bought and protected about 109 acres (0.44 square kilometers) of the battlefield.
You can visit the battlefield by walking on a trail next to the old Chapman's Mill. The mill is north of Interstate 66 on Beverly Mill Drive. During the battle, sharpshooters used the mill's top floor windows to defend the pass. There are also signs and markers along Virginia Route 55, just south of the mill, that tell the story of the battle.
See also
In Spanish: Batalla de la Brecha de Thoroughfare para niños
