Battle of Glorieta Podcast assignments

1. New Mexico History Battle of Glorieta Podcast assignments

2. Read the passages on each slide then follow the assignment given in the podcast. Click the “listen” icon on the slide and do the assignment. Then podcast your anwsers in a power point presentation. Instructions

3. The Confederate plan for the West was to raise a force in Texas, march up the Rio Grande, take Santa Fe, turn northeast on the Santa Fe Trail, capture the stores at Fort Union, head up to Colorado to capture the gold fields and then turn west to take California.  New Mexico, Utah and Colorado were "giant recruiting grounds" for potential enlistees to the Southern cause. All three states had populations loyal to the Confederacy and southern New Mexico had already effectively seceded from the government at Santa Fe and formed a separate territory all the way to California. Confederate Plan

4. War materials in New Mexico were rumored to be extensive - 6,000-8,000 rifles and 25-30 cannon - and the morale of the Federal troops guarding the territory was said to be abysmal. Capture of these territories would mean more wealth for the Confederacy from the rich mines of Colorado. Slavery could be expanded - especially into fertile California - and Arizona could be used as a springboard to invade Mexico. Need for supplies

5. In 1861, Jefferson Davis commissioned General Henry Hopkins Sibley to raise three full regiments in West Texas,. By late Fall 1861, there were 3,500 men prepared to invade New Mexico. By June 1861 Lt. Col Edward R. S. Canby, Union commander of the Department of New Mexico, was alerted to the Confederate mobilization near El Paso. To prepare, Canby moved to enlarge his army of only 2,500 men. He appealed to Colorado Governor William Gilpin for two companies of militia and New Mexico Governor Rencher for eleven companies of volunteers. On July 23, 1861, Baylor crossed the state line to take the Federal Fort Fillmore, near Mesilla, which surrendered to them in a controversial move on the 27th. February 21, 1862 saw the first major conflict between Union and Confederate forces in the West - the Battle of Valverde near Fort Craig, 100 miles south of Albuquerque. The Texans won the battle with 200 casualties attributed to each side. However, Fort Craig remained in Union hands under Canby. Needing supplies, the Confederates began a steady march up the Rio Grande and took possession of Albuquerque on March 2, 1862. Major Charles Pyron of the Second Texas Regiment was sent on to unprotected Santa Fe and hoisted the Confederate flag over the Palace of the Governors on March 13. With supplies running low, Sibley knew they could not remain idle and determined to advance on Fort Union to capture its great stores and arsenal. (Ironically, Sibley had supervised the construction of the arsenal at Fort Union before the war broke out.) Blockade

6. Unaware that the Colorado troops were in New Mexico, Sibley anticipated little trouble from Col. Canby and his men who had been bypassed at Fort Craig. Major Pyron, Second Texas Mounted Rifles, was reinforced with four companies from the Fifth Texas Cavalry under Major John S. Shropshire and headed towards Fort Union. Colonel William Scurry with the Fourth Texas Regiment and the First Battalion, Seventh Texas Mounted Volunteers was dispatched to Galisteo to unite with Pyron on the road between Santa Fe and Fort Union. Pyron camped at Johnson's Ranch at the west entrance to Glorieta Pass on March 25. Neither of the Supreme Commanding Officers were with their troops as they entered Glorieta Pass - U. S. Army Colonel Canby remained at Fort Craig and Confederate General Henry Sibley was rumored to be inebriated at his headquarters in Albuquerque. On March 25 at 3:00 p.m., Major John Chivington with more than 400 infantrymen left Bernal Springs for Santa Fe where he planned to surprise what he believed to be a small force of Confederates. After marching 35 miles, the group arrived and camped at Kozlowski's Ranch at midnight. There, Chivington learned that some Confederates scouts had been seen in the area. Intelligence

7. The joy turned to defeat when word was brought to Colonel Scurry that his supply train at Johnson's Ranch had been completely destroyed. Major Chivington's men, led by Lt. Colonel Manuel Chavez, New Mexico Volunteers, had reached a height on the other side of Glorieta Mesa overlooking the Confederate supply train 1000 feet below. The troops crawled, slid and were lowered by ropes to the base of the cliff. The surprised Confederates were almost defenseless. All the heavily loaded wagons, enough supplies for a small army, were destroyed along with all the animals. Chivington's group returned to support Colonel Slough, but when they arrived at Kozlowski's, they learned their attack had caused Colonel Scurry to send Slough the flag of truce and the request for two days of cease fire. March 29 was spent burying the dead. Casualty figures vary - an estimated 38 Union soldiers killed, 64 wounded and 20 captured; 36 Confederate dead (including Major Ragnet and Shropshire), 60 wounded and 25 captured. Pigeon's Ranch was once again used as a hospital but this time for the Confederates. After two days and nights at Pigeon's Ranch, the Texans retreated to Santa Fe without food or supplies. In attempt to save the campaign, Sibley wrote the Governor of Texas requesting reinforcements but no answer came. The Texans were forced to retreat to Santa Fe and eventually took a long, dangerous march back to Texas. By July 1862, all Confederate Troops had vacated New Mexico Territory and for the duration of the Civil War, New Mexico remained under Union control. Battle

8. Conclusion • To summarize the material learned here click on the “listen” icon final your final podcast assignment.