"The Vortex of Hell"
The 5th New York Duryee's Zouaves
Second Battle of Manassas
August 30th, 1862
At four o'clock on the afternoon
of August 30, 1862 - the climactic day of the Second
Battle of Manassas -- General James Longstreet's
corps of Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia
launched a smashing attack on the Federal forces
of General John Pope. Longstreet's onslaught was
the decisive turning point that ensured a second
Southern victory on the old battlefield of Bull
Run. Pope's left flank was largely undefended, save
for one small brigade comprised of the 5th and 10th
New York under the command of Col. Gouverneur Kemble
Warren. When the Rebel tide swept down upon the
Federal left, Warren sacrificed his force of roughly
1100 men to cover the retreat of Lt. Charles Hazlett's
Battery D, 5th US Artillery - and to buy what time
he could for Pope to avert an even greater disaster.
It was a brave but futile gesture, and Warren's
troops were virtually annihilated by the hard-charging
veterans of the famed Texas Brigade.
Both of Warren's regiments had marched
to war in colorful uniforms modeled on those worn
by the French colonial troops called Zouaves. At
Second Bull Run, the 10th New York was awaiting
a new shipment of Zouave attire, and were clad for
the most part in regulation issue. But the 500-plus
soldiers of the 5th New York, "Duryée's
Zouaves," still sported their exotic regalia
of red and blue. Their ranks had been increased
only days before by more than 70 new recruits, but
the bulk of the regiment were battle-tested veterans
of the Peninsula and Seven Days. Commanded by Capt.
Cleveland Winslow, the Zouaves were used to strict
discipline and renowned for their proficiency in
company and battalion drill. But nothing could have
prepared them for the slaughter that awaited them
that hot August day.
The advanced skirmish line of the
10th New York was driven back on their support,
and the supporting companies thrown back upon the
5th New York with the Texas Brigade hot on their
heels. The Zouaves managed to fire a volley, but
before they could reload their line was caught in
a deadly crossfire, raked with lead that scythed
down scores of men where they stood. "Where
the Regiment stood that day was the very vortex
of hell," a survivor recalled; "not only
were men wounded or killed, they were riddled."
Mark Maritato's painting captures
those deadly moments at the Vortex of Hell. Captain
Winslow oversees his embattled line, his horse soon
to fall beneath him with seven wounds. Captain Wilbur
Lewis, acting as field officer, is shot dead from
the saddle of his horse "Black Jack,"
while the Zouave ranks - Companies K and C in the
foreground -- begin to disintegrate in a hail of
bullets. The Color Guard, some of them armed with
Sharps Rifles, cluster about their flags in a desperate
attempt to protect their precious banners. Both
Color Sergeants - Andrew Allison bearing the Stars
and Stripes, and Francis Spelman with the Regimental
flag - were fatally wounded, as were seven of the
eight men in the Color Guard. Longstreet's juggernaut
plowed ahead, and the Federal lines collapsed in
carnage-strewn retreat across Young's Branch and
up the slopes of Chinn Ridge. But the torn and bloodstained
banners were preserved from capture, as were the
guns of Hazlett's battery - saved by the New Yorker's
brief but valorous stand.
The soldiers of the 5th New York
paid a heavy price for their devotion. In less than
ten minutes time 332 of approximately 525 Zouaves
present were killed, wounded or captured. The losses
included 85 killed outright, and another 34 who
succumbed to their wounds - the greatest fatality
of any Federal infantry regiment in a single battle
during the entire War. This painting is a fitting
tribute to that gallant and terrible event.
Written by Brian C. Pohanka
