The
Battle of Galveston
The Battle of Galveston occurred
on January 1, 1863, during the American Civil
War when Confederate forces under Major General
John B. Magruder attacked and expelled occupying
Union troops from the city of Galveston, Texas.
ATTACK OF THE REBELS UPON OUR
GUN-BOAT FLOTILLA AT GALVESTON, TEXAS, JANUARY
1, 1863. http://www.sonofthesouth.net/leefoundation/civil-war/1863/january/battle-of-galveston.htm
In the fall of 1862, Union Commodore
William B. Renshaw sailed into Galveston harbor
and demanded the surrender of the island city
by its occupants. With virtually no defense
force, the Confederate commander on the island,
Colonel Joseph J. Cook, had little choice
but to comply.
About the same time in late
1862, Major General John B. Magruder was named
Confederate commander of the District of Texas.
Upon arriving in Houston, Magruder immediately
began making plans to recapture Galveston.
To implement his plan, Magruder outfitted
the decks of two river steamers, the Bayou
City and the Neptune, with bails of cotton.
The compressed cotton would be used to protect
an on-board attack force to challenge the
Federal fleet in Galveston harbor. A land
force would also be used in a joint land-sea
attack.
On New Years Eve, the Confederate
Cottonclads, as the curious looking vessels
were called, threaded their way from Harrisburg,
through Galveston Bay, and toward the western
entrance to Galveston harbor.
About dawn on New Year's Day,
1863, the Confederate Cottonclads entered
the west end of Galveston harbor. Their nearest
and first target was the Union's Harriet Lane.
After a brief encounter and
some maneuvering, the tide of battle foretold
an almost certain Union victory. The Confederate
ground forces had been outgunned and effectively
held in check by the Federal warships. After
only a brief contest at sea, one-half of the
two-vessel Texas fleet was lying on the bottom
of the harbor. Further, the lone surviving
Confederate Cottonclad, the Bayou City, was
outnumbered six-to-one among the armed vessels
in the harbor.
After recovering from its first
encounter, however, the Bayou City circled
around and made a second desperate run on
the Lane. This time, the Confederates hit
their target with remarkable precision. In
short order, the crew of the Bayou City succeeded
in storming and overpowering the crew of the
Lane.
Meanwhile, across the harbor,
the Federal Flagship Westfield, with Commodore
Renshaw on board, had become hopelessly grounded
in shallow water. The crew tried furiously
to dislodge her, but she would not budge.
At that point, a temporary truce was negotiated
as both sides considered their positions.
During the truce, Renshaw decided
to destroy the still immobilized Westfield
and attempt a Federal escape from the harbor.
Even this plan went terribly awry. As Renshaw
and his crew fused the gunpowder on the flagship
and quickly rowed away, nothing happened.
They returned for another attempt. But as
they debarked the second time, the gunpowder
prematurely exploded, rocking the entire harbor.
The explosion killed Renshaw and thirteen
of his crew.
With flags of truce still flying,
the remaining Federal vessels stoked their
boilers, and quietly began heading for the
open sea. In this endeavor they were successful,
for the Confederates had little means to pursue.
Thus, the island of Galveston
was recaptured. Twenty-six Confederates had
been killed and 117 wounded. About twice that
many Federals died in the conflict. The Union's
showcase vessel and nearly 400 men were captured.
More importantly for the Texans, however,
was that their victory restored control of
Galveston to the Confederacy, where it would
remain for the balance of the war.
The First Confederate Congress
published its official thanks:
...The bold, intrepid, and gallant
conduct of Maj. Gen. J. Bankhead Magruder,
Col. Thomas Green, Maj. Leon Smith, and other
officers, and of the Texan Rangers and soldiers
engaged in the attack on, and victory achieved
over, the land and naval forces of the enemy
at Galveston, on the 1st of January, 1863,
eminently entitle them to the thanks of Congress
and the country. ... This brilliant achievement,
resulting, under the providence of God, in
the capture of the war steamer Harriet Lane
and the defeat and ignominious flight of the
hostile fleet from the harbor, the recapture
of the city and the raising of the blockade
of the port of Galveston, signally evinces
that superior force may be overcome by skillful
conception and daring courage.
From August 1864 to March 1865,
Magruder commanded the Department of Arkansas,
but then returned to command the District
of Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona during the
last months of the war until the entire Trans-Mississippi
region was surrendered by General Edmund Kirby
Smith.
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