Narrator: As a rebel army musters
just a day's march from Washington,
President Lincoln moves to crush the rebellion
at the battle of bull run.
Man: Lincoln's attitude is, "we're gonna win this conflict.
We'll do whatever it takes."
Narrator: It's a decision that will change the nation forever.
Forward, forward!
Most think it will be over in a matter of hours.
Man: You have a politician saying
he'd be happy to drink all the blood spilled
in this little war.
Narrator: They're wrong.
Man: The south couldn't believe the north was really serious.
The north couldn't believe the south was really serious.
Narrator: As 60,000 soldiers clash near the town of manassas,
raw recruits from Wisconsin
will collide with untested volunteers from Virginia
over a key piece of high ground.
Ultimately, the battle of bull run
is the fight for Henry hill.
Narrator: Their fight plunges an unprepared nation
into a war of unimaginable violence.
Man: They had sent their young men off to fight this battle.
But the United States had never experienced anything like this.
Narrator: It will claim over half a million lives
and destroy the nation as it once was.
Man: Nobody could anticipate the absolute annihilation
of an entire society that would start at manassas.
Captions by vitac... www.Vitac.Com
captions paid for by discovery communications
[ soft footsteps ]
Narrator: The men of the 1st Massachusetts infantry
are part of a large union force
sent into northern Virginia.
They've come to find a rebel army,
believed to be mustering a day's march
from Washington, D.C.
It marks the first time,
since war was declared 3 months ago,
that the capital was threatened by rebel troops.
I got men on our left and our right flanks
and a big bunch of 'em comin' up the middle.
Artillery? The trees are too thick to tell.
Did you get a glimpse of 'em?
What do they look like? They look like us.
They're wearing gray.
Spread the word. We're gonna move forward.
Hey! Tell them to hold their fire.
Those could be our men.
Man: When the civil war erupts,
there is no standard uniform, north or south.
Uh, we often think of the union soldier wearing blue,
and the confederate soldier clad in gray.
But that first slug fest,
the soldiers showed up in their militia uniforms.
Narrator: Unlike most of the union army
that is dressed in blue,
these men wear the gray of the state militia,
just like the majority of rebels.
There!
Man: So consider this.
You got a line of men in gray
and a line of men in gray facing each other.
Friends? Foes?
Who are they?
Do we shoot, or don't we?
Who's out there?
Who are you?
We are Massachusetts men.
Narrator: In the white house,
president Abraham Lincoln endures another sleepless night.
After a bloody clash with rebels
claimed dozens of his men 3 days earlier,
he knows the real battle is about to begin.
Man: Well, the greatest pressure Lincoln
and everybody in the north faced
in 1861 was this incredibly fast-paced rebellion
that had turned into a confederacy of 11 states.
Narrator: Following south Carolina's secession
from the union in December of 1860,
six other southern states follow suit.
Then, in the wake of a rebel attack on fort sumter,
a union base in south Carolina,
four more states join the confederacy
and declare war on the United States.
Their greatest advantage was
the size of the land they possessed
at the beginning of the rebellion.
There's no other rebellion I can point to
where they begin with 750,000 square miles of territory.
It's extraordinary.
Narrator: Lincoln's facing incredible pressure
to put the rebellion down and save the nation.
Lincoln said the union was the best hope
for democracy in the world.
Democracy was a fragile experiment.
And it would only work
if people accepted the results of elections.
And he understood that other countries
of the world did not have democracy
and were perhaps rooting for the United States to fail.
And that could not be allowed to happen.
Man: And so what they needed to do was demonstrate
that they were capable of putting that rebellion down.
And, for Lincoln, that meant sending armies into the field.
Narrator: Like many, Lincoln believes
a decisive military victory will end the crisis.
Man: It was assumed that even though
the southern states had left the union,
the majority of the people in the south
really were loyal to the union.
There was just a few troublemakers.
You discredit them, you win the war.
Narrator: Lincoln's hoping to achieve that victory
near manassas, Virginia...
A small town just 25 miles south of Washington, D.C.
A large rebel force has gathered there
to protect a key rail line
that allows them to move soldiers
and supplies through the state.
It's not only a rail junction, but it also protects
the road south down to Richmond.
So it's a key communication facility with the capital.
The union doesn't like any of that.
They don't like a force so close to Washington.
They don't like, um, not having access to those railroads.
They also don't like the confederates
having those transportation facilities.
Narrator: Thousands of union soldiers are now encamped
near the bull run,
a creek that flows to the north of manassas.
They expect a clash with a large rebel army
in the morning.
Many are 90-day volunteers,
men who enlisted following
the rebel attack on fort sumter in April.
Man: The idea was, they'd be gone for 90 days.
They would, in that time, whip the rebels.
And then they would come back home as heroes.
Just kind of a easy, you know, little risk,
lot of reward for going and joining the union army.
Narrator: As their first major battle looms,
many are too excited to sleep.
Some, like William Collins,
a watchmaker from Wisconsin, write home.
He misses his wife, Kate,
but is committed to defending the union.
Man: Collins felt that, despite the potential sacrifice
he would have to make in battle, and the possibility
of being seriously wounded or being killed,
by serving his country, he was defending his family.
And the sense was widespread, that their families
could not have the kind of upbringing they had had
if the government was allowed to fall.
And so union soldiers felt this strong sense
that there was an obligation to serve.
Narrator: As dawn approaches,
prominent citizens like judge Daniel mccook
arrive from Washington to watch the battle.
Man: There was considerable confidence
that they would beat the rebels.
This was gonna be the great battle
that would end the rebellion.
And who would wanna miss that?
Um, that's why all the politicians came out there.
They were certain they were gonna watch a victory.
Narrator: Daniel mccook's also here to check on his young son,
Charles, a private serving with the 2nd Ohio infantry.
Man: Charles mccook was 17 years old.
And he decided his obligation to the family,
to his community, to the country,
was to join the union army.
Charles.
You're looking well.
Private's life must be agreeing with you.
How is mother?
She still can't believe you turned down that commission.
It's not too late for me to put in a word.
Father, we've talked about this many times.
I appreciate the offer.
But you know my thoughts on that.
I'll make my own way.
Of course you will, Charles.
Of course you will.
I had better get going.
I don't have to tell you
how important this day is to our nation.
Washington will be watching.
The whole country will be watching.
And I know you won't let us down.
Now go and show them what a mccook can do.
Narrator: Charles mccook and the 2nd Ohio
are part of a massive three-pronged attack,
designed to crush the rebel force.
After leaving camp near centreville,
mccook and the others will put pressure on both the left
and right sides of the confederate line,
while a third force will try to sneak
behind the left flank of the rebels
and then destroy it.
The men are to move out at any moment.
Bet you wish you took that commission
your daddy offered you now.
You'd be ridin' on a horse and givin' orders.
And miss all this?
And, besides, it was with a Massachusetts regiment.
I'm not gonna trust my life to a bunch of fishermen.
Man: Ohio! Fall in!
I joined with the Ohio.
I'm damn well gonna fight with the Ohio.
You really think they'll fight?
I don't know.
My pop says they don't have the stomach for it.
Thinks the whole rebellion will be over by lunch.
Narrator: But like most Americans,
Charles' father has no conception
of the wave of violence about to be
unleashed by the battle of bull run.
Man: The expectation by soldiers,
north and south:
One fight, we're done.
A boxing match that's only gonna go one round, not 15.
And whoever the Victor is, it's complete.
Nobody could anticipate the bloodshed.
No one could anticipate the destruction
that would start at manassas.
♪♪
Narrator: The battle of bull run,
the first clash of the civil war
and an event that will forever change the nation,
is about to begin.
Man: Many southerners were fighting to liberate themselves
from what they believed to be an oppressive government.
They were doing what the founding fathers
were doing in 1776.
Revolting, establishing their own government
to restore the principles of the American revolution,
which they believed a government under Abraham Lincoln
and the north was going to pervert.
So they had an obligation to defend their homes.
Narrator: The rebel states have turned to Jefferson Davis
to lead their fight for independence.
Man: One reason he was selected
was because of his military knowledge,
his military understanding.
Davis himself had fought in the Mexican war.
He had studied war.
And so he was very much controlling, uh,
what was happening in the field.
Narrator: Davis knows a massive battle is looming
and has amassed thousands of troops in northern Virginia.
Among them is John opey.
I bet I take down 50 Yankees with one of these.
Man: John opey was a young man in staunton, Virginia.
His family lived in a small estate called Selma.
And when the war came,
he signed up with the 5th Virginia infantry.
Narrator: But the 5th Virginia has a major problem.
While most of the rebels are wearing gray,
these men are going into battle dressed
like the majority of union troops.
Man: The state of Virginia equipped its militiamen
in a standard, regular blue uniform,
which was the United States army uniform.
The only thing that really was different was
that you would have a Virginia belt buckle.
But otherwise it's a standard
U.S. army blue uniform.
Gentlemen, fall in!
By order of general Jackson,
everyone is to wear a strip of white cloth
around his arm
or his hat to identify himself to another.
[ Laughter ] Hold your tongues, men.
If challenged, y'all are to report yourself
as follows, "our homes."
[ Laughter ]
Silence!
Now, get to it.
We've got fightin' to do.
Fall out!
Man: Before the battle,
the confederate high command developed a watchword.
If you approach somebody
and you didn't know who they were,
you were to place your right arm on your left breast,
hold out your weapon and say, "our homes."
So that was the effort to try to alleviate
these kinds of problems.
That don't make no sense.
We're busy beatin' our breasts.
The other fella's gonna have plenty of time
to blow our brains out.
Don't you fret, William.
Them Yankees gonna quit just like they did at sumter.
Narrator: Hours later, union private Charles mccook
and the 2nd Ohio infantry
have reached the edge of the rebel defenses.
[ Gunshot ]
Narrator: The real fight now rages a mile to the northwest.
There, union troops sent to sneak
behind the confederate lines
have clashed with rebels atop Matthews hill.
Rebel private John opey
and the men of the 5th Virginia infantry
are racing up the back slope of Henry hill,
a piece of high ground that's about to play
a pivotal role in the battle.
Up the hill, boys!
Forward now!
On the double quick!
Men, take cover in this grass here.
Narrator: They've been ordered by their commander
to hide in the tall grass
and wait to be called into action.
There were a couple reasons for this.
One was he didn't want them to be visible to the enemy.
And secondly, there was shell fire that was coming in.
And he didn't want to create an easy target
for the enemy artillerymen.
And so they're down on the ground.
They were safe for the moment.
And they were prepared when the action began.
John, for heaven's sake, get down!
Why are we here?
We should be out there fightin'!
Man: So, many of these men were concerned
that there would be one battle,
it would be over and they'd miss it!
And then they would be chastised and laughed at
for the rest of their life.
"Well, where were you on the big day?"
Narrator: The morning does not go well for the rebel troops
fighting to the north of Matthews hill.
Faced with superior numbers,
the confederates are now fleeing back
to the high ground of Henry hill.
Man: The situation's really desperate.
The confederate army's being pushed back.
It's already lost the area around Matthews hill.
Man: The fight for Matthews hill is a decisive union victory.
Get back! They're coming!
Narrator: As terrified rebel troops race back towards
John opey and the men of the 5th Virginia,
it looks like the confederate line
is about to crack.
Center men, hold your positions!
That's an order!
Narrator: In the war department's telegraph room,
president Abraham Lincoln
follows developments on the battlefield.
Confident union generals tell him
that victory is imminent.
Man: Abraham Lincoln is convinced the day is his.
The union is excited.
They are winning the battle of manassas,
as far as they are concerned.
Narrator: Atop Henry hill,
the confederate army is in real trouble.
Man: The confederate army is being pushed back.
They are now running around Henry hill
like a bunch of ants that...
That's had its hive disturbed.
There's no real order. There's just chaos.
It doesn't look good at all for the confederates.
I mean, this battle's gonna be lost.
Narrator: If it is,
the dream of an independent south
is all but over.
As the line is collapsing, John opey witnesses
the birth of a legend.
Man: Into this chaos comes Jackson.
Narrator: Just months earlier,
he was a little-known instructor at a military college.
General Thomas Jonathan Jackson
now commands the 1st Virginia brigade.
He's about to become one of the most famous men in america.
Jackson is on his horse.
So he can see out over top of the hill
where the union army is, what it's doing.
Narrator: As terrified rebels prepare to flee,
Jackson bravely rides along the summit,
almost daring yankee gunners to cut him down.
Another rebel general, trying to rally his men,
sees Jackson's act of incredible courage.
He points. And he says,
"there stands Jackson like a stone wall.
Let us go to his assistance."
A legend is born.
Narrator: Were it not for
stonewall Jackson's coolness under fire,
the battle, and perhaps the entire civil war,
could have ended then and there.
As Jackson holds his ground,
more confederate troops start to reform behind him.
As rebels begin to gather atop Henry hill,
union private William Collins
and the men of the 2nd Wisconsin
had been ordered to march immediately to the battlefield.
Is he one of ours or theirs?
He's a reb.
Told you they'd run.
Gotta ride to the back.
You men!
You leave that man be! Fall in!
Man: Going into battle,
the biggest problem both armies face
is the psychological aspects of experiencing a battle
in which soldiers are dying.
What that actually really meant,
in terms of the scenes you would see,
the emotions you would feel,
that was something that they just weren't ready for.
Narrator: Near the banks of the bull run,
Charles mccook has been ordered to help at
a union field hospital.
You sure your daddy didn't have somethin' to do with this?
Bet he pulled some strings
so that his son didn't end up in front of a rebel Cannon.
You don't know my father.
If he had his way,
I'd be sent in with the first charge.
I swear, I think having his son wounded in battle
would be the best thing that ever happened to his career
in Washington.
Hold, men!
Hold to the treeline!
Narrator: As the union prepares to launch
another assault on the rebels,
the 2nd Wisconsin makes their way
towards the base of Henry hill,
where the next attack will soon begin.
We're gonna cut through this field,
through those trees.
And then we muster at a farm on the other side.
Captain, we don't know
who or what is on the other side over there.
The enemy's retreated. You can see for yourself.
Given the soldiers and their officers
are inexperienced altogether,
it's not so cut and dry.
"Okay, I give you an order, and you obey that order."
Maybe it's "I give you that order," and you say,
"well, I think maybe I should do it another way."
I mean, couldn't they be lying...
You know, I don't have time for this...
Collins! Let's go!
Company f, forward!
Narrator: William Collins and the men of the 2nd Wisconsin
have no idea that the rebel line has held
and that the confederates are about to launch a counterattack
that will set the course of American history
for years to come.
Narrator: The battle of bull run,
the first major clash of the civil war, has begun.
After driving rebels from their first line of defense,
union troops believe the day is theirs.
They've no idea that the rebels
are about to launch an attack of their own.
Stay together, men! For the trees!
The trees!
Collins!
Get up. Get up!
[ Tinnitus ]
[ Muffled explosion ]
Collins!
Get up!
[ Tinnitus fades ] Get up!
Man: Soldiers hated being under artillery fire
because what you're waiting for is to go into battle
to prove your manhood,
to prove you're a soldier, to defend your country.
And you're not being given the opportunity to fight back
when you're under artillery fire.
Narrator: At a nearby field hospital,
union private Charles mccook
has orders to continue helping with the wounded.
Like several prominent union citizens,
his father, Daniel, came to picnic
and watch the battle many felt would be over in minutes.
Shocked by the ferocity of the fighting,
he now helps union doctors deal
with the wave of injured and dying young men.
The civil war takes place at a time
when medicine had not been able to repair
a lot of the damaged bodies.
Narrator: Facing bones shattered by rifled muskets
and high-powered artillery,
for many patients, there was only one option.
Man: Oftentimes the solution for a person
who was injured in an extremity, in a leg, was amputation.
Limbs were stacked up like corn outside the hospital.
[ Man screaming ]
Narrator: Following their retreat from Matthews hill
in late morning, rebel forces have regrouped
on the high ground of Henry hill.
Thousands are ready for the fight.
We know, on July the 21st by mid-afternoon,
just based on the movements of the troops,
that there is going to be a massive collision,
uh, on Henry hill.
John opey and the 5th Virginia infantry
have been sent forward.
Their orders: Hold the ground at any cost.
The dream of a free south
will live or die on these slopes.
Man: Fortunately for the confederates here,
they're in the position of defense.
They're in the position of holding.
And so, unfortunately for the federals,
they have to come up... Up the hill.
Narrator: Despite this obstacle, hundreds of yankee troops
are ordered to drive the rebels from Henry hill.
John opey must hold off
a wave of gray-clad union troops.
Overwhelmed by union forces,
opey and the 5th Virginia must abandon their position
and race for safety.
Man: You have soldiers who are completely inexperienced
engaged in a savage battle.
And you have soldiers on both sides wearing blue.
You have soldiers on both sides wearing gray.
I can't think of a more dysfunctional way
to try to fight a battle.
It's very hard to imagine the ferocity of the fight.
You have people wounded and picking up other guns
while they are still wounded.
You have people gurgling blood.
You have people carrying their dying
and dead friends off the battlefield.
Our homes! Our homes!
Our homes!
Narrator: In Washington, president Abraham Lincoln
awaits news from the battlefield.
After receiving positive reports earlier in the day,
the telegraph has fallen silent.
He's beginning to fear the worst.
25 miles away, the fight is still too close to call.
It now centers on union cannons
placed near the top of Henry hill.
In a bold attempt to drive the rebels from the field,
the union has moved two batteries
of cannons onto the forward slopes of the hill.
A savage fight to control them now rages on.
Man: Ultimately, the battle of bull
run and the fight for Henry hill
will devolve into a battle around these very cannons here.
Man: The struggle just back and forth,
back and forth, wave after wave, attack after attack.
Really what we're talking about is the high ground.
Who's gonna hold the high ground?
But the guns were the focal point on the high ground.
Keep your heads down!
Narrator: As they are seized again by the rebels,
the 2nd Wisconsin is ordered to take them back.
William Collins is about to be thrown
into the epicenter of a storm of violence
that's about to sweep across an unsuspecting nation.
Narrator: Near the banks of the bull run,
america is being given its first taste of the violence
that's about to engulf the nation.
A battle that many felt would be over by noon
has now entered its 10th hour of carnage.
The fight now centers on one key objective:
The cannons that control the battlefield's high ground.
All right. Go forward.
Keep your heads down along the fence!
Forward, forward!
Hold here! Hold!
Man: When the 2nd Wisconsin arrives on the scene,
the guns are in the possession of the confederates.
Narrator: Union soldier William Collins
and the men of the 2nd Wisconsin have orders to take them back.
Affix bayonets!
I can't... I can't do it.
I can't do it. I can't do it.
Yes, you can! I can't do it. No.
Breathe! No. No.
Breathe!
Forward!
Man: They have to come up the hill,
over all this open ground.
They're extremely vulnerable.
And they can easily be shot.
They are susceptible to confederate artillery fire.
[ Gunshots and artillery fire ]
Forward!
Narrator: Still hoping to get into the fight,
union private Charles mccook
remains stuck at the field hospital,
dealing with a steady flow of federal wounded.
His father, Daniel, a prominent judge,
does what he can as well.
Here.
Save your breath, son.
Take a sip.
You've done your country a great service.
I know you wanna help, father. But perhaps it would be best
if we take care of our own first.
Look at the buttons. He's a damn rebel.
Charles!
Just be careful, all right?
Come on, men!
All right, spin it!
Narrator: Near the summit of Henry hill,
William Collins and the 2nd Wisconsin
have reclaimed a vitally important union gun.
With it, they hope to turn the tide of the battle,
drive the rebels from the field and end the rebellion.
But the rebels have one last card to play.
They've moved fresh troops up the back side of Henry hill.
And, alongside the 5th Virginia infantry,
they're about to be unleashed upon the unsuspecting Yankees.
Forward, men! That's the ride!
Narrator: Faced with a wave of fresh rebel troops,
Collins and the exhausted Yankees run for their lives.
Union troops are hit with a panic.
The retreat from bull run becomes a route from bull run.
Those troops abandoned their cannons and supplies
and ran pell-mell toward
the union defenses at centreville, Virginia.
Let's go!
Narrator: Sent to get more water
for the union field hospital,
union private Charles mccook has no idea
that they union line has been shattered
and that rebel troops
are now racing towards him.
[ Horse whinnies ]
Narrator: The first major battle of the American civil war
is now 11 hours old.
For union troops, the unthinkable has happened.
After almost driving the rebels
from the field earlier in the day,
yankee soldiers now flee in the face
of a savage rebel counterattack.
Man: When the union army start retreating,
the confederates begin
trying to organize some kind of pursuit.
And what they do is they send across some cavalry,
and their advance carries them toward where the hospital is,
where Charles mccook is.
[ Horse whinnies ]
Surrender!
Charles, surrender!
Surrender now, boy!
Charles!
Help! Help!
Man: Daniel mccook immediately came to his wounded son.
Help, doctor!
Just seeing it happen himself personally,
just a really horrible,
horrible, uh, scene to contemplate.
Narrator: As Daniel mccook tries to save his wounded son,
a wave of rebels drive the Yankees from the field.
The day is theirs.
Man: John opey and the 5th virginians
had recaptured the battery.
It had been a hard fought battle on Henry hill.
And what they undoubtedly felt was a strong sense of a relief
that they had won the battle.
Man: There was a great deal of confidence
and belief that, for the confederates,
um, this is the beginning of a new nation.
This is the new dawn for a new south.
Narrator: Later that day, president Abraham Lincoln
learns of the catastrophic defeat of his troops.
He's stunned that the south
has taken on the best the United States
could muster...
And triumphed.
Man: The outcome at bull run was shocking
to northern public opinion.
It was shocking to the political leadership in Washington.
A real consequence of that first battle
is that I think both sides quickly discovered,
this war is not gonna end in 90 days.
It's gonna be a very difficult haul.
Narrator: But Lincoln has no intention of backing down.
Man: Lincoln's response is, "we're not gonna quit."
The south had sort of thought
that one defeat would lead the...
The north to think it wouldn't be worth it.
But, to Lincoln, this war is worth it.
Man: After the defeat, what does he do?
He stays up all night.
And he starts drafting a memo for what to do next.
This is a man who never gives up.
Lincoln was dedicated first and foremost
to the absolute guaranteed preservation of the union.
And if that meant continued sacrifice,
continued killing, continued war,
that would happen.
Narrator: The rebels have won the day,
but the cost has been tremendous.
3,600 men were killed or wounded,
making it the deadliest day in the nation's history so far.
Among the victims is John opey's close friend.
Man: The United States had never experienced anything like this.
They'd sent their young men, um, off to fight this battle.
They understood there would be losses.
But of this scale,
this was not what Americans had anticipated.
Narrator: As the sun sets on the battlefield,
it sets as well on the old america.
The battle of bull run marks the beginning
of the greatest struggle in the nation's history.
By the time it's over, 600,000 men will be dead,
a nation will be torn apart, and a new one born.
Narrator: The day after bull run, at 2:30 A.M.,
Charles mccook dies from his wounds.
Like so many fathers in the civil war,
Daniel mccook must Bury his own son.
Soon after, he enlists in the union army
and is killed in action in 1863.
William Collins survives the war
and returns to Wisconsin to run a jewelry shop
with his wife, Kate.
John opey joins the confederate cavalry
and fights at the battle of gettysburg.
In 1865, with the war finally over,
he returns home to Virginia.