Battle of Fort Blakeley

Coordinates: 30°44′32.67″N 87°55′37.34″W / 30.7424083°N 87.9270389°W / 30.7424083; -87.9270389
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Battle of Fort Blakeley
Part of the American Civil War

Storming of Fort Blakeley
DateApril 2–9, 1865
Location
Baldwin County, Alabama
30°44′32.67″N 87°55′37.34″W / 30.7424083°N 87.9270389°W / 30.7424083; -87.9270389
Result

Union victory

  • Fort Blakeley surrendered to the U.S.
Belligerents
United States United States (Union) Confederate States of America CSA (Confederacy)
Commanders and leaders
Edward Canby
Frederick Steele[1]
St. John R. Liddell
Units involved
Army of West Mississippi,
Union ships		 Fort Blakeley Garrison,
Confederate ships
Strength
45,000[2] 4,000[2]
Casualties and losses
629 on April 9 (150 killed, 650 wounded total[3]) 2,900 (75 killed[3])

The Battle of Fort Blakeley took place from April 2 to April 9, 1865, in

Mobile Campaign of the American Civil War. At the time, Blakeley, Alabama, had been the county seat of Baldwin County.[4]

The Battle of Blakeley was the final major battle of the Civil War, with surrender just hours after Grant had accepted the surrender of Lee at

President Lincoln
on April 15, 1865, other Confederate surrenders continued into June 1865.

Background

Positions of units involved
Position of 2nd Division, 13th Army Corps

Maj. Gen.

St. John R. Liddell, with about 4,000 men, held out against the much larger Union force until Spanish Fort fell on April 8 in the Battle of Spanish Fort
. This allowed Canby to concentrate 16,000 men for the attack on Fort Blakeley.

Battle

The final assault began on April 9, led by Brig. Gen.

John P. Hawkins. Sheer numbers breached the Confederate earthworks, compelling the Confederates, including Liddell, to surrender within about 30 minutes in the final assault after 5:30 pm.[3]

Aftermath

The casualty figures are approximate, but an estimated 75 Confederate soldiers were killed, with over 2,800 captured, and 150 Union troops were killed with 650 wounded during the siege and assault.

Pensacola, FL.[4]

Two days later, the two nearby island batteries in the Blakeley River were abandoned.[3] After this battle, Union forces were finally able to occupy the city of Mobile, Alabama, on April 12, 1865.[3]

Legacy

The site of the battle is now a historical park, Historic Blakeley State Park. The American Battlefield Trust and its partners, including the Historic Blakeley Foundation, have saved 126 acres of Fort Blakeley Battlefield through mid-2023. [7]

Opposing forces

Union

Further information:
Fort Blakeley Union order of battle

Confederate

Further information:
Fort Blakeley Confederate order of battle

Notes

  1. ^ In tactical command of all troops in front of Fort Blakeley
  2. ^ a b Bodart (1908), p. 542
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h "Battle of Fort Blakeley". EncyclopediaOfAlabama.org. 2017. p. 1, paragraph 7. Retrieved 2017-11-07.
  4. ^ a b c d e Mike Bunn, Historic Blakeley State Park (May 2017). "Battle of Fort Blakeley". Encyclopedia of Alabama. Retrieved 2017-11-07.
  5. ^ "Battle of Blakeley". Historical Marker Database. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  6. ^ Anderson, Marc D. (March 26, 2015). "Re-enactors to fire up Civil War battlefield Saturday, marking 150th anniversary of Battle of Fort Blakeley". AL.com. Retrieved March 26, 2015.
  7. ^ "Fort Blakeley Battlefield". American Battlefield Trust. Retrieved June 19, 2023.

References

External links
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