Battle of Pensacola (1861)

Battle of Pensacola
Part of the American Civil War
Map of the defenses of Pensacola Bay.
Date January 8–November 23, 1861 Location Pensacola, Florida Result Confederate victory
Belligerents
United States (Union)	CSA (Confederacy)
Commanders and leaders
Harvey Brown	Braxton Bragg
Strength
2,000	7,000
Casualties and losses
unknown	unknown

The Battle of Pensacola was a battle between the Confederate States of America troops occupying Pensacola Bay and the Union fleet under Harvey Brown. The Confederates retained control of the city and its forts after months of siege.

After Abraham Lincoln was elected President, but before he took office, southern states began seceding from the United States, led by South Carolina on December 20, 1860. Around midnight of January 8, 1861 the small garrison of Fort Barrancas repelled a group of local men intent on taking the fort. Some historians suggest that these were the first shots fired by United States forces in the Civil War. On January 10, 1861, the day Florida seceded from the Union, the garrison evacuated Fort Barrancas to the dilapidated but more defensible Fort Pickens.

Over the next several months, both sides built new cannon batteries and brought in more personnel. The opposing forces engaged in cannon duels many times but with little effect. Near the end of the year, manning stood at about 7,000 men on the Confederate side opposed by 2,000 Union soldiers around Fort Pickens.

On 9 October 1861 the commander of Confederate forces in Pensacola, General Braxton Bragg, ordered an assault on Fort Pickens that was ultimately unsuccessful. Colonel Harvey Brown, the commander of Union forces, felt this attack required an answer and planned an attack of his own. Fort McRee, the closest fortification to Fort Pickens and a road block to any attempted assault on Pensacola, was to be the primary target.

Starting on the morning of 22 November 1861, Fort McRee was bombarded heavily by Union forces at Fort Pickens, and by two ships, Niagara and Richmond. Initially returning strong fire, the Confederates were able to hold their own and even managed to heavily damage the Richmond. However, the combined efforts of the two ships eventually led to the suppression of fire by an adjacent battery early in the afternoon with the guns of Fort McRee falling silent by 5pm. A fall in tide and the onset of darkness caused the two ships to withdraw.

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