The First Battle of Bull Run

The first time the two armies met in battle was near Manassas Junction, Virginia which was by the stream of Bull Run. The battle would be known as, Bull Run.

35,000 Union soldiers were marching towards Richmond, but they were kind of slow due to the fact that they were not used to all the marching.



The Confederates knew they were coming, so they brought in 11,000 troops to add to the 22,000 that were already there.

The locals also heard there would be a battle, so , like any other normal person, they packed a picinic and went to check it out while enjoying their lunch.



Both the Union General, McDowell and the Confederate General, Beauregard, had planned the best they could, but the soldiers had never been in combat, and things turned into chaos. The spectators fled...


Another Confederate troop arrived on the scene. The leader was General Thomas Jackson, he and his men were able to stand their ground and stop the Union.



Someone described Jackson as, "standing there like a stonewall," which would become his nickname, Stonewall Jackson.

Things weren't going well for the Union, they were falling back and then General Beauregard ordered for his men to charge.



The Union retreated, the first battle of Bull Run was over. The Confederates had 2,000 casualties while the Union had 2,900.

After this, the people of the United States realized the war would not be short and that having a picnic during battles wouldn't be a good idea. Sandwiches and blood didn't mix well.

Lincoln called for a million more volunteers and named a new general to the lead, George McClellan.