Test. Test test. Test test test. He stormed out of headquarters without orders, down the street, to the dock side, commondeered a steamer and went to forth fi fi. When he arrived, he got anything but an optimistic greeting. I am come to share your feet, you are to be sacrificed. Despite his gloomy prediction, and even though he had barely 1 15000 troops in the force. In the woods, general cherry deployed his troops in lines stretching from the Atlantic Beach across the peninsula to the backs of the peninsula. In the rear, a secondary line faced northward where terry feared a confederate attack from the rear. And reinforcements had been sent south. 6,000 troops from north carolina. They were seasoned combat troots, sent to defend their home state and they were ready to do battle. It was the generals worst fear, especially if a rear attack came at night when the federal fleet could not provide federal support for fear of hitting federal troops. From inside forth fi fisher the sent messages urging for them to attack, attack, attack. But brag did not. On january 15, 1865 the Northern Army made their move. The sun road in a cloud cloudless blue sky this morning. They were waiting for orders to assault the great fort. The navel bombardment would cease. The troofs would make the asuggestion in three brigades aiming for the extreme western flank. At the same time, 2,000 men in a naval brigade would assault fort fishers northeastern bastian. The naval ber gaze force was come boded of volunteers. They would charge the fort over open beach with handguns and t cutlaces. The fleet ceased fire. And in charge of the nfl ber gaze was a 33yearold naval officer one of admiral porters favorite officers. The volunteers in the naval brigade were not trained infantyman. They were brave, but they were not infantry soldiers, they were firemen, coal heavers. One of them, a shirt class boy, was practically a child. The orders call for the sailors to delay their assault until the infantry scaled the wall. But the scalers were determined to be the first inside of the fort. Interservice rivalry. And once the steam whistles gave the signal, they charged down the beach toward the fort. Colonel lamb and general whiting, where the land face met the sea face at an angle, so they posted half of the survival members high love the walls. They could not see the army in the preline, and when they saw the naval ber danger charging down the beech, they believe that the main assault on the fort. On they came, sailors and marines, advancing at a run so close to the surf they unknowningly flanked the forts mine field. They were 300 regards away from the wall of the fort. Then colonel lamb gave the order to fire. It flattening the front row of seamen. The whole mass of men went down like a row of falling bricks. They tried to go on, and a few fade it, but everywhere men were falling and the assault abruptly ended. We were packed like sheep in a pen. The shreeks and the groans were enough to make you feel like you were in hell. Lou tenant commander finally food up and called for the sailors to resume their assault. Charge men, he said, dont retreat. Some of the sailors lying on the beech started to say what did he say, was it to restreet . And a chorus rose from sailors on the beach. All at once, all of the survivors were back up the beech atop the northeast, they climbed up and they whooped and yelled in victory for others, it was the supreme moment of triumph, but it was brief. In the distance, to the west, toward the river, he could see battle smoke and movement on the batteries nearest to the river. Men were moving there. He knew that the enemy was inside the fort. While the new haven brigade was making the assault, directing it toward fort fishers riverside battery. As the first rushed the fort, it charged through the infamous needed. The lines had been severed by the bombardment. The new york troops, the first brigade, army of the james. It was the officer that first came so close. Now they are scaling the wall near the river, and they were atop the battery by the time the naval brigade was going down the beach. The officer had been raised in a nearby coastal fishing rill advantages. They unleashed a sering fire into the Massive Energy troops and swarming up the slopes of the float. A fierce outburst of muskets. And our men made a foothold on the slope and returned fire as fierce as the one they received. The entrance was fielded by two Field Artillery pieces and the gun crews managed to get off of two runs of canister that took down scores of troops in blue uniforms. It was the penny packers brigade. They were from pennsylvania. Some said he was the younger brigade demander in the brigade. An or fan he was a tested come bat veteran. He had the cars of 13 battle rounds. They pushed the southerners off of the forts riverside battery. Drove the defepders from the third and the fourth. They held firm, and the fighting became close up in face to face. The comrade next to me was shot on his brains. And colonel pennypacker was carried with a serious wound. They went to lend up more. Down the giant wall they charged near the river. It was a soldiers fight now. As a man would fall, another would tring up to take his place. At the center of the struggle, he was hit twice. His men dragged him out of the fight, meanwhile he rounded up a solve jer of every kind that he could find he ordered them to pull fire. On the landfate wall, meanwhile, the demand was battling, incoming artillery rounds suddenly exploded. It can from a battery on the court. And it came from officers that were allegedly drunk. It tore into the troops and it seemed to stall the federal advan advance. Lamb had the hope that the enme intruders could be dropped or brought back. Finally he orders general hope to mik the asuggestion on the federal rear of the army. Good troops, experienced fighters moved through the woods north of fort fisher and attacked the federal area line. They engaged white troops on the left and the black troops on the right. Solid experienced combat veterans, they answered the question posed by critics. Plaque troops would fight and fight well. Even so, as the federal rear garb start to give way, some were certain that the entire federal headline was about to brak. And then general brag ordered the troops to retreat back up the third brigade, the second division, it was known as bells brigade. It was composed of troops from new york, and it was commanded by louis bell. Son of a New Hampshire governor. He was a member of brown university. He took a shot and fell wounded. His troops kept going as trained. They went in to add their strength to the troops already inside. And the counselor could see more men and women, in the forts interior. Despite their superior numbers, they seem to hesitate. If they were struck hard now the charge for a desperate counter attack, they obeyed. But as aforbade, but they were struck by a 50 caliber bullet. Hit his left hip, fractured his hipbone. They faltered and that ended the counter attack. Lamb was carried off to the Field Hospital to join general whiting. But like bells and penny packers northern soldiers, those defending fort fisher would not give up despite the demand void left by the absence of whiting and lamb. They continued to be slowly backed up, command of fort fishers defense went to the defending subordinate. The northern troops had a definite advantage, but on the walls of this fort, with those on both sides crammed, the drengt did not immediately matter. They were giving ground very grudgingly. And despite their lack of experience they fought as hard as men could fight that day. It was later said to be some of the bitterest hand to hand fighting of the war. A soldier would be shot in the head by a ball. It was a spurt of blood and it was over. A clamber came from the wounded men in the sand. The dead lay there. At dusk, the federal advance appeared to start again. Colonel curtis sent a courier hustling with a request for more reinforcements. Instead of reinforcements we got ordered to entrench. To dig in on the earth and wall and wait for barng. It came from the division commander. He loathed urcolonel kur tas. And making the troop ship, but when they were ordered to set sail, he was at headquarters found with the generals daughter. They were ordered today go without the superior officer, and after he hitched a ride on the hospital ship, they had a heated argument on the trooped. By the time they went into battle they were not speaking to each other. So curtis repeatedly asked more forces and he was ordered to stop the fight and set in for the nights. He refewed to obey. They sent a curious with an armload of spades. Up to where the fight was raging. In the midst of the souths, the blood, and the death, this courier appeared. I always wondered what did they think, it is raining shovels. Are the northern forces out of bullets. But cur tas kept fighting. He was hit, one of his eyes was taken out, knocked him unconscious, and they had to drag him out. It was almost nighttime. He put in three brigades into the fort. The troops had been fighting for hours. The federal advance seems stall stalled, and they are entrenched for the night. He was at a Pivotal Point in the battle. Should he stop, or should he risk more loss of life and push on. He ordered more reinforcements charging in now at terrys orders. And he called for the u. S. Collared troops of the army corp. For the first time black troops were going to the front. The federal reinforcements poured into the fort and the momentum shifted to the men in blue. Many of the troops were fresh now while the defenders were far fewer in number and nearing exhaustion. Still the fighting was bitter and bloody. Men would blaze away in the darkness. They would then be seen by the flash of exploding shells, it was all like a hideous dream, but the forces defender was exhausted. The chaplain had been collecting cartridges from the dead but it was not enough. They fought stubbornly, courageously, but now their fight was nearing an end. A breakthrough came when fresh troops moved through the darkness of the land base. And then rushed over the wall and open fired on the southerners on the area. Sounded now by a host of but uniforms, they finally gave up. After six hours of ferocious fighting the federal army of the james held fort fisher. General whiting and colonel lamb were going side by side when whiting looked up and saw an officer in a blue uniform standing over him and looking down at him. It was general terry. Now the victor of general fort fisher. He said, i surrender, sir, to you, the forces under my command. And the confederacy lost their last major sea fort. The troops cheered, jumped, and helped each other. A victory, and we proclaimed it, too, from sea and shore. They ek quoed back wild cheering. Men grasp each other and wept only as brave men can in the hour of the victory. The comparison in confederate gray. Guns were batters, broken, and dismounted and there was horrible evidence of the battles furry and the destruction of the naval bombardment. Heavy guns and others knocked to pieces. Some with heads off, some cut i. Federal officials considered the loss as a stunning blow. Alexander stevens spoke about one of the greatest disasters to the fall of the south since the beginning of the war. Faced with the last major sea port, some congressmen called n on. The south should finally make terms with the north. President lincoln and the u. S. Secretary of state met with a f federate peace commission. They lost their last major report. With the capture of wilmington, the confederacy was isolated from the rest of the world. There are no other major ports open to the south. No more imported weapons of war would be rolling up the way. It couwould come three months later. Thank you. Any questions. Yes, sir . A long time ago i read that bulter will and porter had a great deal of animosity for butler, so much so that he ordered his navy on the first assault to support that current research. I have ner seen any evidence of that. But the rip between the two was strained. A lot of things, butler actually invited but porter had the uss malvern. It was a nice ship for the fleet, but when he went aboard, he was really amazed at the opulence and not happy about it. He mentioned that the security was terrible and then a bomb went off. And it was tossed into the boiler. And then it coo sank. You could not have picked people so different in different ways. He would be able to trap down the officer. So i would not believe that without seeing some evidence. What about the next morning. Thats a great question. Ames didnt say much. He distinguished himself, he was an excellent field officer, but the whole feud thing with him, it went on and on. He didnt say much, but he went on his after action report, and you would have thought that ames on the battle. And years later a Veterans Group in new york city was meeting, and it was announced in advance, they made presentations on different topics and it was announced that he would speak on the battle of fort fisher. He stayed in his ranks. And not long after he died, ames asked to make this presentation. He took credit for the fort fisher. According to critics. The political lip, writing books, and a fierce defender of general terry and what happened at fort fisher. And he knew that ames was there. He clenched his fist and said you craven hearted coward. That is great for me. What happened was general terrys brother was also angry. He sent a letter to everybody good. He says im going to write a book. Well he never did, but thanks to him i did. And im really grateful for that collection of work that he did. They didnt think any of that would be possible. Thank you, sir. Sorry, back here, maam. You said he sent hope and then recalled hope, was there any conflict there. What happened to bragg . I think everybody generally agrees that hoak was a confident officer and he followed officers and he pulled back as he was told to. And a trail from richmond, he was with him for a long time, and somebody asked for a long time can you tell us something good that bragg did . And i dont pick on general bragg, i dont, but he did create a really nice bridge. I was in a Grocery Store not far from my home, and i was pushing my shopping cart, i had seven kids, so im pushing my shopping cart and a nice elderly lady came walking by and i didnt know her and she said youre mr. Bragg . And i said yes, and she said you wrote that book on fort fisher. And i she said you wrote bad things about general bragg and he is my ancestor. Yes, regarding the overfiring of the fort, i heard that when they were observing the initial firing, they noticed they were firing at the flag so they moved the flag and many of the shells went into the river. I had not heard that, that would be the right thing to do, but it is true reports say that the sailors were undisciplined insiders and they got into a contest to try to knock down the garrison flag, and they over shot the fort. And in the mid 20th century, shrimp boat captains were complaining about picking up spots in their nets over the river. I need to find out about that, thank you. Anyone else . You have been a great group, thank you so much. We have a preview of what is available every weekend on cspan 3. This weekend, the liberation of the auschwitz concentration camp. And Marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day followed by scholars talking about the brutality of the nazi regime. Starting tonight. Timothy smith explored the 1863 battle at champion hill. This event was part of the historical parks small battles and big results symposium. All right, we have a great speech for our second session this morning. Dr. Timothy smith is part of the National Parks service. In addition to numerous articles and essays, he is the author, editor, and coeditor of 18
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