First Battle Of Bull Run Essay

Imagine you’re asleep in a tent at Manassas, Va. The date is July 21st, 1861. You wake up to the sound of gunfire and you turn to see your best friend lying there dead beside you. You realize that the battle is beginning and it is time to get to work. This is what may have happened to a soldier on the day of the battle’s start, but what really did happen on the day of that battle? The first event that happened was the Union Marched from Washington D.C. to Manassas, Va. and they started by attacking Beauregard's men who were defending the railroad junction at Manassas. This attack was just a small force sent to test confederate defenses. Another event was that the fighting commenced and raged on until confederate forces were beginning to be pushed back. The Union had an overly complex plan which caused their first attack to fail and gave the confederates a slight …show more content…
The Union started by attacking Beauregard's men who were defending the railroad junction at Manassas. This attack was just a small force sent to test confederate defenses. Another event was that the fighting commenced and raged on until confederate forces were beginning to be pushed back. The Union had an overly complex plan which caused their first attack to fail and gave the confederates a slight advantage in the battle. The final event of the battle was that confederate reinforcements showed up and were able to break the Union’s right flank, giving them the advantage that they needed to win the battle. The battle was one of the most important of the Civil War and if the outcome had been any different, the war might not have even lasted any longer. If the Union were to have won the battle, it would have opened a path to Richmond and the Union could have ended the war right then and there. The Battle of Bull Run was important to the Civil War in every way