The Second Battle of Manassas was fought in Northern Virginia from August 28-30, 1862 near the town of Manassas and Bull Run Creek. It had been just over a year since the Confederate Army defeated the Union Army in this same location. Once again the area would see a Confederate victory.
On August 28, 1862 General Robert E. Lee ordered General Stonewall Jackson to engage Union Major General John Pope in battle. It had become Pope’s objective to protect the Union Capital. To engage Pope was a risk for the Confederates because General Jackson’s army was far fewer in number, by approximately 20,000 men. However, the Confederates attacked Pope’s army and engaged in battle for several hours. The day ended with neither side able to claim victory.
General Pope believed this was his chance to defeat the great General Stonewall Jackson. However, he was unaware that at this time, General Longstreet and his army of 28,000 had joined General Jackson in the battle. General Porter joined General Pope, however he did not believe he was in position to battle and so did not come to the aid of his comrade. Both armies fought fiercely on August 29 with heavy casualties.
Still unaware that General Longstreet had joined General Jackson and wanting to secure victory against the man who earned his name on this very spot the year before, General Pope made a tactical error on August 30 that cost him the battle. He depleted his ranks on the left flank in order to secure victory on the right. Longstreet’s Army attacked the Union army on its weak side. The Union Army was not able to hold against this surprise attack, despite the aid of General Porter, and was forced to retreat. However, unlike the year before, the Union army was able to retreat in an organized fashion and reached the safety of the fortified capital.
Although the second Battle of Manassas was not as decisive a victory for the Confederate States as the first, it was a measure of the supreme command of General Robert E. Lee. With a much smaller army, he was able to defeat the Union soldiers with fewer casualties. The Confederate Army suffered roughly 9,000 casualties while the Union Army suffered roughly 15,000 casualties.