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Chapter 4: details of the battle of Manassas.
I have now told what I saw and did during the
first battle of Manassas, and as many very erroneous accounts of that battle, both in its general features and its details, were given by newspaper correspondents, from both sections, which have furnished the basis for most of the descriptions of it, contained errors-even in works professing to be authentic histories,--I will here give a succinct account of the battle from the authentic official reports, and my own knowledge as far as it extends.
On the morning of the 21st we held the line of
Bull Run, with our right at
Union Mills and our left at
Stone Bridge.
EDwell's brigade was at
Union Mills,
Jones' at McLean's Ford,
Longstreet's at Blackburn's Ford,
Bonham's at Mitchell's Ford,
Cocke at the fords below
Stone Bridge, and
Evans with
Sloan's regiment and
Wheat's battalion was at the
Stone Bridge.
Holmes' brigade, which had arrived from
Aquia Creek, was some three miles in rear of
Ewell's position.
My brigade was in reserve to support
Longstreet or
Jones, as might be required, and
Jackson's and parts of
Bee's and
Bartow's brigades of
Johnston's army — which had arrived by the Manassas Gap Railroad--were held as a general reserve to be used as occasion might require.
The
Warrenton Pike from
Centreville to
Warrenton crosses
Bull Run at
Stone Bridge, and its general direction from
Centreville is a little south of west.
MbDkowell's force had reached
Centreville on the 18th, and that day the 19th and 20th had been employed by him in reconnoitring.
Contrary to
General Beauregard's anticipations,
McDowell, instead of advancing against our centre on the morning of the 21st, left one division (Miles') and a brigade of another (
Tyler's) to hold
Centreville and amuse our right and centre, while
