"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 the late Brian C. Pohanka
