| Battle of Brownsville, Texas | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theTrans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War | ||||||||
| ||||||||
| Belligerents | ||||||||
 United States (Union) |  Confederate States (Confederacy) |  Mexican patriots | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | ||||||||
| Nathaniel P. Banks | Hamilton P. Bee | José Maria Cobos | ||||||
| Units involved | ||||||||
| 3 brigades from XIII Corps (6,000) | 4 companies, 33rd Texas Cavalry (150) 2 companies of 3 month volunteers | local citizens | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | ||||||||
| Unknown | 1 killed 1 wounded 1 company deserted | Unknown | ||||||
TheBattle of Brownsville took place on November 2–6, 1863 during the American Civil War. It was a successful effort on behalf of the Union Army to disrupt Confederate blockade runners along theGulf Coast in Texas.[1] The Union assault precipitated the capture ofMatamoros by a force of Mexican patriots, led by exiled officers living in Brownsville.[2]
During the first half of the war, the Union Navy had successfully blockaded many Southern ports along the Gulf Coast. Cotton trade was a major economic asset for Texas and the whole Confederacy. Initially cotton was transported toBrazos Santiago Pass at the delta of theRio Grande and exported from Port Isabel. Union forces captured this port and trade was moved inland toBrownsville, Texas. From Brownsville goods were transported across the border toMatamoros and from there to neutral ports along the Mexican coast.[3]
The U.S. government was also anxious to show Union presence along the Mexican border since the French army had just invaded Mexico and installedMaximillian as emperor. Following the Union debacle at thesecond Battle of Sabine Pass, the U.S. government demanded GeneralNathaniel P. Banks, commanding theDepartment of the Gulf, to make another attempt at invading Texas.[4]
Nathaniel Banks assembled 6,000 soldiers from three brigades inNapoleon J. T. Dana'sXIII Corps. The Confederate forces in the area were commanded by GeneralHamilton P. Bee. Bee's forces consisted of a mere 4 companies from the 33rd Texas Cavalry under Colonel James Duff and another 2 companies of 3 month volunteers. All other Confederates along the coast had been called elsewhere in the wake of the Union attack at Sabine Pass. The total Confederate force amounted to roughly 150 men stationed atFort Brown. One company of volunteers under Captain Adrian I. Vidal defected, killing a private and wounding another from the 33rd Texas.[5][6]
Banks landed the expedition at the mouth of the Rio Grande on November 2, 1863. Bee dispatched two companies of his cavalry to observe and report on the Union landing. Company A under Captain Richard Taylor arrived at the mouth of the Rio Grande while company F under Captain Henry Davis arrived at Point Isabel further north. On November 2 Captain Taylor informed General Bee the Union forces had landed cavalry while Bee made preparatory orders for the evacuation of Brownsville.[7] ColonelWilliam M. Dye's brigade led the Union advance. After chasing off Taylor's Confederate cavalry, Dye's men entered the Brownsville around 10:00am on November 6, 1863.[8] General Bee quickly ordered the evacuation of the city and abandoned Fort Brown. He personally supervised the burning of what military supplies and cotton he could. Inside the fort was 8,000 pounds of condemned explosives which caused a great explosion much to the terror of the local citizens.[9]
The Confederates' destruction spread into the city while the soldiers resorted to looting prompting the local citizens into a degree of opposition. A local resident by the name of General José Maria Cobos was a Mexican general and refugee living in exile due to the recent French invasion. General Cobos received permission from the civilian authorities in Brownsville to organize a force to resist the looters and subdue the fires started by the Confederate evacuation.[10]
Around noon General Banks personally arrived in the city and by 4:00pm the remaining Union forces arrived. Colonel Dye was put in command of the post and the Union army encamped in the city, the army barracks at Fort Brown having been destroyed. The Union forces also captured a large supply of cotton left behind by the Confederates.[11]
The loss of Brownsville significantly disrupted Confederate cotton trade. The new trade route into Mexico lay roughly 300 miles northwest. Brownsville provided a base for further Union operations against Mustang Island and Fort Esperanza up the Texas coast. General Cobos took his vigilante force across the border and seized control of Matamoros. There he continued to be of concern to General Banks.
Confederate forces made an attempt to recapture Brownsville in 1864. ColonelJohn S. "Rip" Ford assembled a large force of cavalry, but on July 30, 1864 Ford found the new Union commander,Francis J. Herron, had already abandoned Brownsville. The Confederates were able to reoccupy the city without a fight.
Maj GenNathaniel P. Banks
XIII Corps
Maj GenNapoleon J. T. Dana[12]
| Division | Brigade | Regiments and Others |
|---|---|---|
First Division | 1st Brigade |
|
| 2nd Brigade
|
| |
Second Division[13] | 1st Brigade |
|
| 2nd Brigade |
| |
| Attached |
|
Maj GenJohn B. Magruder
1st Division - Brigadier GeneralHamilton P. Bee
25°54′08″N97°29′45″W / 25.9022°N 97.4959°W /25.9022; -97.4959
| Origins | |
|---|---|
| 1861 | |
| 1862 | |
| 1863 | |
| 1864 | |
| 1865 | |
| Units | |
| Aftermath | |
