The First Battle of Kernstown (March 23, 1862)

The First Battle of Kernstown was fought on March 23, 1862, in Frederick County and Winchester, Virginia, the opening battle of Major General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson's campaign through the Shenandoah Valley during the American Civil War. Although the battle was a Confederate defeat, and in fact Jackson's only defeat in the war, it represented a strategic victory for the South and started Jackson on the road to being one of the most celebrated Confederate generals.

Jackson's division had been retreating down the Valley (to the northeast) to cover the flank of Joseph E. Johnston's forces, falling back from Centerville. On March 21, 1862, Jackson received word that the Union force pursuing them was splitting, with one half pulling back to guard the upper Shenandoah Valley. to take advantage of this, Jackson turned his men around and marched 25 miles on March 22 and another 15 on the morning of March 23.

Relying on faulty intelligence from his cavalry commander, Colonel Turner Ashby, that reported the Union forces at Winchester numbered only four regiments (about 3,000 men), Jackson marched aggressively north with his 3,400-man division. The Union forces, however, constituted a full infantry division, almost 9,000 men. They were commanded by Col. Nathan Kimball, replacing Brig. Gen. James Shields, who had been wounded the previous day. Jackson moved north from Woodstock and arrived before the Union position at Kernstown at 1:00 p.m., March 23. He found that Ashby had been forced back and immediately reinforced him with one brigade. With the other two brigades Jackson sought to envelop the Union right by way of Sandy Ridge. But Colonel Erastus B. Tyler's brigade countered this movement, and, when Kimball's brigade moved to his assistance, the Confederates were driven from the field. There was no effective Union pursuant.

The Battle Map

�An excellent map for a 1 vs 1 or 2 vs 2 battle, this is our first published Divided Nation battle, of the first battle of Kernstown. Although this battle was a defeat for General Jackson, it was the start of a long and successful campaign in the Shenandoah valley. Both sides have engineers and are able to lay charges. No-upgrades.

Map by [HWK]SirWilliam