Gettysburg won the james j. Roberts award for best civil war book that year and his book on confederate goliath earned the prestigious award on Civil War History given out yearly from the new york city civil war roundtable. Lets give rod gragg a warm welcome. [applause] thank you. Pleasure for me to be in a room full of historians and i say that seriously because i have learned that i may write a lot but the folks who really know the civil war are those of you who read a lot. And i appreciate that. Before i begin, if you dont mind, id like to tell you the story about the young history major what decided after he got a bachelors degree in history, he probably ought to get a masters degree in business so he could earn a living. So he was accepted, enrolled in a distant Prestigious School of business and wondered soon after he got there if he made the right decision because he failed his first exam and so did everyone in the class. Now, the professor was notoriously irrascable, he came in after the exam, plopped the papers on the lecturn and he said ive never seen anything like this, this is the worst performance on an exam ive seen in my teaching career. In fact, i dont know how anyone but a buffoon a could perform so poorly. In fact, i want every buffoon in this room to stand up. The room was quiet. Nobody moved. In the rear, the young history major stood up. Professor peered over his glasses and said, so, young man, you are admitting youre a buffoon . No, sir, the history major said respectfully, i just hate to see you standing alone. [laughter] applause applause john ford said about some of those john wayne movies, theyre not true but they ought to be. When the morning sun broke over the atlantic horizon in december of 1864, it bathed a nation torn asunder. America was in the agonizing grip of the civil war. Now nearing its fourth year of bloodshed. Back in 1861 in the wars heady opening days, most americans had predicted a brief and bloodless conflict settled within a few months with little loss of life. Instead, what had followed, of course, on countless fields of fire was a great and gory contest which had ground on year after year, unleashing an unimaginable harvest of death and suffering and destruction into the lives of americans north and south. By late 1864, almost 600,000 of americas sons had already died in this seemingly endless conflict and thousands more were dying weekly. They had fallen in staggering numbers at pastoral sounding places like shiloh and bull run and marys heights and ken kenny saw mountain. At antedum, 23,000 fell in one day. In one assault, 7,000 fell in eight minutes, it was reported. In the wars sprawling military camps, tens of thousands grew ill and died of killers like measles and dysentery and pneumonia and typhoid fever. In the south, homes and farms destroyed, towns and cities set ablaze, inflation, shortages, threat of invasion made living retchedly hard for many. In the north, as in the south, frequent casualty reports carried grief into countless homes. And still the war continued to call americas sons to distant fields of death. Alongside a stretch of North Carolina beach in late 1864 would unfold a mighty drama intended by Northern Forces to force an end to this massive blood bath that surged across america. There, near the mouth of the Cape Fear River, the largest joint armynavy operation of the civil war would be staged. If successful, it could place the south in a final stranglehold and could lead the north to a final victory. It would be a deadly contest, a lifeanddeath struggle for men in blue from new york, connecticut, New Hampshire, pennsylvania, indiana, and defenders in gray, mainly from North Carolina, some from georgia and south carolina. The target of the norths greatest armynavy operation, the prize that southern soldiers would defend to the death was a fortress that was famous on both sides of the atlantic. Fort fisher, the confederate goliath. By december of 1864, federal forces controlled the mississippi river, splitting the confederacy north and south. Elsewhere, the south was being dismembered by invasion. General william t. Sherman and his overpowering columns had laid waste to a long stretch of georgia on his march to the sea, soon would strike into the heart of south carolina. In tennessee, the once formidable Confederate Army of tennessee was ragged and reduced in virginia, general robert e. Lee had been forced to abandon his masterful maneuvering and defend the confederate capital along an embattled line at petersburg and every day lees army of Northern Virginia grew a little weaker, steadily besieged by general ulysses s. Grant and the overwhelming numbers of well equipped troops who performed well from the army of the potomac. Confederate president Jefferson Davis, some members of the Confederate Congress and some southerners still held to the hope that southern independence could somehow be achieved if the beleaguered confederacy could just hold on and outlast the war weary north. But compounding the confederacys ever worsening dilemma was the stranglehold of an increasingly effective naval blockade and the steady loss of southern sea ports to the combined power of Northern Army and naval forces. One by one southern sea ports from norfolk to galveston had been captured or closed and the confederacy was being slowly isolated from the rest of the world. By late 1864, wilmington, North Carolina, alone survived as a confederacys sole major seaport. Sleek, fast, blockade running vessels lined the docks at wilmington bringing in british infield rivals, ammunition, percussion caps, lead, tin, other articles of war, while taking out cotton and rice as exports. By late 1864, wilmington had become the lifeline of the confederacy. Defending wilmington was a formidable line of defenses that stretched from the city on both sides of the Cape Fear River for 20 miles to the rivers mouth which opened into the atlantic via two inlets. This mighty collection of forts and artillery batteries known as the cape fear defense system, was accurate at the mouth of the river by fort fisher. Located on the tip of a peninsula known as Confederate Point during the war, fort fisher was roughly shaped like the number seven with its top, or land face, stretching for half a mile across the peninsula from the Cape Fear River to the atlantic. And its sea face, stretching for a mile along the beach to the south. It was known as the gibraltar of the south, one of historys great fortresses. Mounting at one point more than 40 pieces of heavy artillery. Its gun chambers were protected by high, hilllike earthen traverses which were hollow or bomb proof to protect the forts garrison during enemy bombardments and boasted a 60foot high sea face battery called the mound battery and a cutting edge piece of military technology on its land face, a modern style minefield in which dozens of artillery shells were connected by wires to a battery which could detonate them beneath the feet of assaulting infantry. Fort fisher was famous in the south and feared by some in the north. Fort fishers creator and commander, the man who had directed most of the construction of this world famous fortress, was a 29yearold southern officer who had no professional training as a military engineer. His name was william lamb. He was a native of norfolk, virginia, son of the citys mayor, had graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a law degree from william and mary at age 19, optimistic, talented, devout, a book lover, a natural student. William lamb was considered brilliant by some. At age 20 he became a newspaper editor, the paper his father bought him. And when the war erupted, he joined the Confederate Army and was quickly promoted to major. In 1862 he was made an Army Quartermaster and was transferred to wilmington where he soon became colonel and commander of this fledgling fort fisher. While lamb continued strengthening fort fisher, some 500 miles to the north in washington, d. C. , federal authorities at the highest level were making plans for the great forts destruction and the closing of the seaport of wilmington. President lincoln and u. S. Navy secretary gideon wells were convinced that the fall of fort fisher would close wilmington and closing wilmington as the last operational major seaport in the confederacy could isolate the south and help hasten northern victory in the war. Lincoln authorized the necessary naval and army forces for the fort fisher campaign and he said he would do so if general grant was willing. Grant, now the commanding general of all northern armies, had been reluctant to support a campaign that he believed would require a massive armynavy operation, but now he, too, agreed it was time. So in early december 1864, approximately 6400 federal troops were withdrawn from the virginia front and were marched aboard a flotilla of troop ships bound for an assault on faraway fort fisher. The principal Northern Force for the fort fisher campaign consisted of the Second Division, 24th corps, of the army of the james, an army created some six months earlier by a troop merger. The army of the james had yet to prove itself. Its troops were combat veterans and theyd seen a lot of fighting in virginia. But they had enjoyed few victories. Also selected for the fort fisher campaign were troops of the Third Division of the all black 25th corps, black troops with white officers, paid less than white troops, subjected to discrimination, often used to clear brush for white northern troops. The men of the u. S. Colored troops, as they were known, still had to prove themselves to critics who asked would they really fight. Placed in command of Army Operations for the expedition was a 29yearold west pointer, general godfrey wetzel. But as the troop ships prepared to steam southward, the unexpected occurred. General wetzels superior officer, the head of the army of the james, exercised the privilege of rank and announced that he would accompany the expedition, which meant he would really be in command. The Army Commander was general benjamin f. Butler and his decision to involve himself in the fort fisher campaign created a high ranking stir, because ben butler was almost certainly the most controversial officer in the Northern Army. Butler was a political general, a wealthy 46yearold massachusetts attorney, a volunteer officer, and a prominent northern democrat in a war being waged by a republican administration. He was eccentric, riding about on horseback adorned in bedroom slippers in the dark of night, reading poetry, reciting it aloud. And he was controversial. In new orleans, where he was military governor in 1862, he had been accused of seizing 1 million from the french consulate. He was nicknamed spoons butler for reportedly appropriating southern silverware, and in the south, after he ordered southern women jailed as prostitutes for insulting northern officers in new orleans, chamber pot manufacturers cranked out a line of products, pots with butlers face on the bottom. He had introduced aerial warfare to the civil war by sending up observers in hot air balloons which proved to be a useful idea. And he had proposed attacking confederate earth works with fire hoses which did not prove to be a good idea. He was, it seemed, always at the center of some dispute. Quote, old ben is like a cuddle fish muddying its own water, said a fellow officer. And as competent on the field of battle as much as an opium eater is in council. For the fort fisher expedition, ben butler had come up with a secret weapon. He had read a newspaper article about terrible death and damage in britain caused by the accidental explosion of a boatload of gun powder and it inspired an idea. He had many of those. Why not fill an old ship with tons of gun powder, butler reasoned, float it near fort fisher, and blow it up . Butler believed the powder boat, as he called it, might flatten fort fisher, maybe flatten wilmington 20 miles away, and give his troops an easy victory. The u. S. Armys chief engineer studied the powder boat proposal, privately declared it as likely to damage fort fisher as, quote, firing feathers from muskets. However, admiral david d. Porter, given command of the naval fleet sent to accompany the army and bombard fort fisher in the fort fisher campaign, believed that butlers powder boat might revolutionize Naval Warfare and he intended for the u. S. Navy to get its share of the glory if that happened. Admiral porter loved the navy. The sea was in his blood. He was a fourth generation naval officer. His greatgrandfather had been a merchant seaman, his grandfather had commanded an american privateer in the revolution. Porter himself had gone to sea at age 10. During the civil war he had risen in rank rapidly. He commanded a mortar flotilla, played a key role in the capture of new orleans and was cited for his role in the capture of vicksburg. His wartime achievements enabled him to skip two ranks. He was promoted from captain to rear admiral so at the time of the fort fisher campaign he was one of the norths most famous naval figures. Porter was bright. He was resourceful, energetic, competent. He was also, critics said, gruff, opinionated, cocky, competitive and fiercely ambitious. Typically porter had acted quickly and decisively when given command of operations for the navy for the fort fisher expedition. Drawing ships from the u. S. Navys north atlantic blockading squadron, he organized one of the largest fleets ever assembled in america 56 war ships, including 3400ton colorado with its crew of more than 600, 48gun minnesota, four monitor class warships in what was at that time probably the navys most famous vessel, the iron plated, heavily armed, steam frig on the u. S. S. Ironsides. Porter also provided butlers floating bomb. To do that he picked an aging blockading vessel, the u. S. S. Louisiana from the war of 1812, which was packed with 200 tons of gun powder in bags and barrels. The flotilla of army transports entered the atlantic near newport news on the afternoon of december 14, 1864, heading southward toward the North Carolina coast. Admiral porters naval fleet arrived first and admiral porter decided himself to detonate the powder boat offshore fort fisher without general butlers knowledge. Far out to sea, away from the floating bomb, the sailors of admiral porters fleet lined the ships railing, peered into the darkness at night and waited for the powder boat to explode at a safe distance. The great blast was expected at 1 00 a. M. , december 24. But nothing happened. Soon it was 1 30. 1 35. 1 40, 1 45. Then at 1 46 the powder boat exploded. A bright flash illuminated the darkness towards the shore in the distance and soon after thick smoke rolled over the fleet followed then by silence and darkness. Aboard the u. S. S. Wilderness, a Northern Naval officer who watched the explosion stated simply, well theres a fizzle. [laughter] the great powder boat explosion was a failure. It was loud. It rattled windows in wilmington 20 miles away. And it severely frightened some young southern sentries on the beach. But it did nothing to harm fort fisher. General butler was furious when he learned that his powder boat had been exploded without him. He believed admiral porter had set off the floating bomb so he could claim all the glory for himself and that he had botched the job. Butler wanted to abandon the fort fisher campaign and take his troops back to virginia. Finally, he was persuaded by Staff Officers to go ahead with the landing and put the army ashore just for a reconnaissance force. Meanwhile, the federal naval bombardment had begun at procisely 12 45 a. M. On december 24 when the u. S. S. New ironsides opened fire on the fort. The fleets 56 warships were anchored in battle stations in a milelong line opposite the fort. The combined firepower of the fleet was more than 10 times the firepower of the fort and unleashed an astonishing barrage of power that by some accounts was the greatest naval bombardment in American History at that time. Quote, it was a splendid yet wicked sight, a Northern Naval sailor would recall. What a shower of shell we must have pounded down on their devoted heads. Our shells would bury themselves in the sand and earth works and explode there in all directions. One continual roar like the heaviest thunder. The smoke was so thick at times it completely hid the sun. Oh, it was a sight never to be forgotten. To fort fishers garrison, the bombardment seemed anything but splendid. Most were artillery troops, mainly the 36th, 40th and 10th North Carolina artillery regiments supported by some gun crews from the Confederate Navy and several companies of teenagers from the North Carolina junior reserves. Most waited out the naval bombardment inside fort fishers earthen bomb proof but for those who had to man the guns during the bombardment, it was terrifying. I never saw shells fall so thick, a member of the forts garrison would later recount. They came down like hail and i thought every one would get me. The naval bombardment began on Christmas Eve and continued through Christmas Day sending more than 20,000 rounds, a Million Pounds of iron, hurtling toward fort fisher. However, the navys aim was poor and much of the twoday barrage fell in the Cape Fear River behind the fort. General butlers troops began landing on Christmas Day, brought ashore by long line of navy launches. The advance federal troops were new yorkers, troops from the 142nd and 112th new york infantry and they were led by a towering 64 29yearold, colonel Newton Martin curtis. Curtis was a smalltown School Teacher and post master in civilian life, a volunteer officer in the war who had been wounded early in the fighting and after recovery had been stuck in an army desk job. Now he was a Brigade Commander in the 24th army corps and he was eager for action. Curtis led a force of northern troops close to the fort while the naval bombardment was underway and while the forts garrison was hiding inside the bomb proofs. Fort fisher, to his eyes, therefore, appeared empty, undefended. And curtis was sure that an immediate ground assault would capture the fort if butler would order it and he had no orders. Before he could get permission to do so, curtis learned that general butler had surprised everybody and called off the assault. A reconnaissance report had convinced general butler that the navy had failed to destroy fort fishers artillery and that the confederates were reportedly rushing reinforcements down the peninsula to the fort. So general butler headed northward in his headquarters ship leaving scores of his troops stranded on the beach until the navy eventually rescued them. Butlers decision to withdraw sparked a National Controversy in the north and became front page news. Grant had cautioned butler that troops should not be removed if they were landed and he believed that butler had intentionally disobeyed his orders. Admiral porter, meanwhile, having witnessed the failure of the powder boat explosion, began to put distance between himself and the powder boat, blamed it all on butler, including the expeditions failure to capture fort fisher. The issue reached the white house and this time ben butlers political connections were not enough to save him. Four days into the new year of 1865, president lincoln issued executive order number one, which removed general butler from command of the army of the james. Meanwhile, the southern troops defending fort fisher viewed the aborted federal attack as a major victory. A parade was held and fort fishers garrison was jubilant. However, fort fishers commander, colonel william lamb, did not share that joyful attitude. Lamb was sure, he said, the Northern Forces would be back and soon. Colonel lambs solemn prediction was shared by general William Henry chase whiting who had been the confederate commander of the cape fear region until the eve of the federal attack. Whiting had graduated from west point in the class of 1841 with a scholastic record that would not be surpassed until the graduation of douglas mccarthyure more than 60 years later. In the prewar u. S. Army, whiting had been seen as a rising star in the Army Engineering corps. His family was from the north but when war came, he chose to serve the south. In confederate service, he had risen in rank rapidly from major to general in six months. Whiting had been at the opening shots in charleston, promoted on the field at first manassas, made Brigade Commander by the seven days campaign. Chase whiting seemed destined for wartime glory and then his fortunes suddenly crashed. Whitings troubles began when he offended confederate president Jefferson Davis by describing one of davispresident ial directives publicly as foolish. Davis was incensed. It was said of the president that he never forgot a friend, nor forgave an enemy. So in 1862, general whiting was posted to wilmington as departmental commander of a department that at the time seemed to be a place where nothing was happening. Even so, as colonel lambs superior and mentor, whiting helped forge fort fishers mighty reputation. However, when news of a pending federal attack on wilmington reached president davis, he ordered whiting replaced by an officer who was the president s friend, a general named braxton bragg. Bragg was a west point graduate, a mexican war combat veteran, but he had overseen a series of disasters in the southern war cause including the loss of the southern rail hub at chattanooga, some said. He was a harsh disciplinarian. It was said that he shot a deserter a day and he was reviled by many of his troops. Instead of cheering him when he appeared, braggs troops would jeer. Bully for bragg, hes hell, on retreat. Bragg was generally disliked by his fellow officers, some of whom said he quarreled with everyone. One officer who knew him insisted that once while the general was simultaneously serving as both quartermaster and Company Commander that bragg fell into an argument with himself and had to summon his commander to settle the dispute. When he was given command of wilmington, a richmond newspaper editorialized, bragg has been sent to wilmington. Goodbye, wilmington. [laughter] you cant make this up. So far, however, wilmington and fort fischer had survived both the federal christmas is attack and general bags new command. But, on january 12th, 1865. The Northern Army and navy expedition returned. For the Second Attack on fort fisher, admiral porter had strength in the fleet to 59 warships, with a total of 627 guns, board of the 21 troop transports, there were almost 9000 troops this time. The troops from the First Expedition, and plus reinforcements. Additional artillery had been added, and in baltimore, another 4000 troops were standing by if needed. In command, the federal army of the james now, instead of general butler, was a new commanding general. General alfred h. Terry. Age 38. Terry may have seemed like an odd choice if for Army Commander for this expedition. He was not a west pointer, he was not a professional soldier. In civilian life, he was a lawyer and clerk of court in new haven connecticut we. A quiet, reserved man who spent his spare moments and peacetime playing the flute. Grant had good reasons for choosing jerry. Like general butler, most officers in the war, terry was a volunteer officer. He was also a season combat commander, experienced in joint armynavy operations, confident, quiet, dependable, cooperative, a dramatic contrast to the controversial bend butler. At 8 30 am on friday, january 13th, the federal fleet opened fire again on fort fisher. This time, the naval bombardment was more accurate, more devastating, more deadly. The fire did not fall into the Cape Fear River. Instead, inflicted serious casualties on the forts defenders, and one by one began viking fort fishers heavy all jewelry. Colonel amps garrison huddled in the bomb proves, hoping to wait out the bombardment. When the defenders emerged to demand the forts guns and returned fire from time to time, they risk quick death from this horrendous reign of iron. The federal and victory landing began that morning. However launch after launch, fearing northern soldiers shore until most of general theresa thousand troops were deployed on the beach, general brag allowed them to land unopposed. Shot and shelled from the naval bombardment continued to rain on fort fisher and at the height of the federal naval bombardment, the colonel lambs shock, general waiting appeared without notice that landslide in the ford. Whiting now under general bribes command head left wilmington headquarters without orders. He was dismayed, he reported, to have seen brags hands shaking as he worked out evacuation of the southern troops, even before the fighting began. He stormed out of their without orders, storm down the street of wilmington, commandeered a steamer went to fort fisher. Despite, and when he arrived at fort fisher, whiting gave lamb anything but an optimistic greater. Lamb, my boy. He announced. You and your garrison are to be sacrificed. Despite why things looming prediction, even though we have barely 1500 troops at the fort now. Colonel am remained confident of fort fishers defenses and its defenders. In the woods, north of fort fisher, meanwhile, general cherry deployed his nor troops and line stretching from the Atlantic Beach across the peninsula to the backs of the Cape Fear River. The main line faced fort fisher. In the rear, a secondary line faced northward. Where terry feared a confederate attack from the rear. Actually, waiting for an order to attack the federal rear, where reinforcements that had been sent south from leaves army in virginia. 6000 troops commanded by general robert e. Of North Carolina. They were season combat troops North Carolina and sent to defend their home state. They were ready to do battle. It was general terrys worst fear, especially if a rear attack came at night and the federal fleet could not provide fire support for fear of hitting federal troops. From inside fort fisher, colonel lamb and general lighting repeatedly sent messages, urging general brag to attack, attack, attack. Bragg did not. The bombardment continued to pound fort fisher throughout saturday, january 14th. On sunday, january 15th, 1865, the Northern Army made its move. The sun rose over the atlantic horizon on a cloudless, blue sky that morning. And the whats north of fort fisher the federal frontline troops were in position waiting for orders to assaults the great fort. According to general terrys attack plan, a naval bombardment would seize at a rearrange time, and then the soldiers from the army of the james would rush the fort. The troops and make the assault and three brigades. One after another, aiming for an extreme western flank of the forts land face overlooking the Cape Fear River. At the same time, 2000 men in a naval brigade composed of sailors and marines, drawn from the naval fleet what assault fort fishers northeastern. The angle of the foot of the land faced meant to the sea face at waters edge. The naval brigade force, which is admiral porters idea, was composed entirely of volunteers. They faced a deadly challenge. They would charge the fort over approximately one mile of open beach, largely armed with nothing more than handguns. At 3 35 that afternoon, the fleet ceased fire and the warships blew their steam whistles, which was the call for the assault begin. In charge of the naval brigade was a 33yearold naval officer. Lieutenant commander randall freeze, one of admiral reporters favored officers. He was having a hard time. The volunteers are composed double grade were not trained infantrymen. They knew nothing about making infantry assault. They were braves, but they were not infantry soldiers. They were sailors, and ship cooks, firemen, cold heavers, sale makers, carpenters, at least one of them, a third class boy on the uss politan was practically a child. General terrys orders called for the sailors to delay their assault until the infantry scaled forts wall on the far end of the fort near the river. The sailors would determine to be the first inside the fort. Service rivalry, and estimate as the fleets gave the signal, the sailors and the complement of u. S. Marines charged down the beach toward the fort. Fort fishers defenders rushed from their bomb proves when the bombardment seized. They knew that meant the federal infantry assault, which they expected, was probably taking place. Colonel am and general lighting believe the main assault would be directed the forts northeast bastion, for the land faced met the sea face in an angle. They had posted almost half of the surviving members of the fourth garrison at that point. High atop before its furthering walls. Lamb and waiting could not see the army of the change in the distant preline, and they saw the naval brigade charging down the beach, they believed that was the main assault on the fort. Colonel am ordered his troops to hold their fire until the naval brigade was within easy range. Y on they came, sailors and marines, and dancing utterances so close to the surface, that they unknowingly flanked the forts minefield. There were 300 yards away from the wall of the fort of the northeast bastion, 250, 200, 150, and then colonel lam give the order to fire. It was a murderous volley. It flattened the front row of semen. The whole mass of men said one of them later, went down like a role falling bricks. The survivors were quickly up, resuming the assault until another volley tore into their ranks. They try to go on and if you made it to the football, but everywhere, men were falling and the naval assault abruptly ended. We were packed like sheep in a pen, one of them said later. The enemy were crowding the ramparts not 40 miles away and shooting as fast as they could fire. The shrieks and groans mingling with the fiendish rattling around us where enough to cause one to feel like he was in hell. The naval officers that unwise a charge to the front and the assault force, now they were pinned down under fire of the sailors. Lieutenant commander breeze finally stood up and called for the sailors to assume and resume assaults, charge men, he shouted. Dont retreat some of the sailors lying on the beach began shouting, what did he say . Was it to retreat . Chorus of yells arose from the ranks of sailors and marines lying on the beach, retreat retreat all at once, almost all survivors were on their feet and back up the beach they raced in a panic, leaving behind dead sailors and marines. And the wounded. A top the northeast bastion, fort fishers defenders climbed up on the pair pits and they whooped and yelled in victory as they watch the northern sailors and marines frantically flee up the beach. For colonel lamb, and general whiting it was the supreme moment of triumph. But it was brief. Colonel lamb realized something was wrong. In the distance to the west, towards the Cape Fear River, you could see battle smoke and movement on the forts, batteries nears to the river. Men were moving their, struggling atop the fort wall and above the struggle, the smoke land could see battle flags not his, not the forts they were northern battle flags, and he knew the enemy was inside for. General terri, well the navy brigade was making its assault had launched the army assault as planned. Directing it towards fort fisher riverside battery, three brigades, one after the another. As the first brigade rushed the fort, without realizing it they charged through the forts infamous minefield. The new mines exploded. The lines connecting the minds to their electric battery had been severed by the naval bombardment. In the lead of this assault, were new york troops in the first brigade, Second Division 24th army corps of the james known as curtis is brigade, they were led by colonel Newton Martin curtis, the officer who had ventured so close to fort fisher during the First Expedition before butler called it off. The new yorker scaled the fort wall near the river, and were atop the battery by the time the naval brigade was fleeing down the beach. The southerners defending the riverside battery or men of the 36 North Carolina artillery, led by captain kitchen brady. 26yearold officer who had been raised near nearby coastal fishing village. He had 250 men to face an insult by several thousand northern infantry. He deployed his troops on the fort wall and they unleashed a searing fire into the massive enemy troops, crammed together and swarming up the slopes of the fort. A fierce outburst of musket really braided the first heads that rose above the level of the fort, one of the northern soldiers would later recall. At least one flag in its bare roll down the slope, but our men made some sort of foothold on the slope, and delivered over the parapet of fire as fears as the one they received. The riverside entrance to fort fisher was defended by two Field Artillery pieces and the gun crews managed to get off two rounds of canister that tech down scores of troops and blue uniforms. As curtis is first brigade scaled the fort wall, general terry ordered a second brigade to join the assault. It was penny packers brigade. They are where troops from new york, pennsylvania led by terrys youngest colonel, 20 year old penny packer. Who some said it was the youngest Brigade Commander in the army. An orphan from pennsylvania, he had volunteered for service at age 16 and suddenly risen to the ranks of colonel and Brigade Commander he was a tested combat veteran, despite his youth, and he already carried the scars of 13 battle rooms. Supported now by penny packers troops, criticize new yorkers pushed the southerners off of the fourth riverside battery, pushed on to the next battery, drove the southerner defenders from the third in the fourth. There, the fourth battery forced defenders held for him, the fighting became closeup and face to face. Comrade next to me on the traverse was shot and his brains were killed, one of the north carolinians would recount. His brains were spotted on my face. Among the federal troops, one who fell atop the fort was colonel penny pecker, who was shot down with battle flag in hand. He was carried to the rear with a serious wound. Seeing enemy soldiers now inside fort fisher, general whiting sent colonel lamb to roundup more defenders will he let a counterattack with the troops to turn back naval salt. Down the giant earth inland face while they charged, plunged into the massive men in blue, and now top the fort while near the river. It was a soldiers fight now, southern or survivor would later testify. As a man would fall, another would spring up to take their place. Officers were loading in firing with us. It was a hand to hand fight. At the center of the struggle, general lighting was shot twice. Hit in the sky, and went down. His men dragged him out of the fight, carried him to the forts Field Hospital. Colonel lamb, meanwhile, had rounded up a force of every soldier he could find. He deployed them behind a line of shallow earthworks and ordered them to poor fire into the blue uniform troops warming over and around the forts riverside batteries. On the forts land face wall, meanwhile, is general whitings command battle criticism and penny packers northern troops. Incoming artillery rounds suddenly exploded among troops on both sides. The fire, apparently, came from battery buchanan, a huge battery on the southern tip of the fort which was met by confederate sailors, and it was claimed the officers were allegedly drunk during the battle. The deadly fire tore into whitings troops as friendly fire, but it also seemed to stall the federal advance. Lamb, now had the hope that the enemy intruders could be stopped and even turned back if only general brag but order and assault on the federal rear. General brian ordered general hope to make the assault on the federal rearview army. Two brigades of North Carolina troops, kirkland an inkling man brigades. Good troops, experienced fighters. Move through the woods north of fort fisher, attacked the federal realign. They engaged, what troops from the 24th army corps on the federal right, and black troops from the 25th army corps on the federal left. The white troops withdrew under heavy fire, with the black troops held firm. As they unflinchingly traded fire with southerners, solid experience combat veterans, these army, the u. S. Color troops answer the question often posed by critics, black troops would fight, and fight well. Even so as the right flank of the federal resort guard began to give way, some of hopes field officers were certain that the entire federal line in the rear was finally about to break. Then, general bragg ordered the troops to seize assault and go back up the peninsula. Brags decision meant that fort fisher surviving troops would have to fight alone. Inside the fort, meanwhile, the federal push down the land faced will ground to hold. Watching the battle from a distance with a pair of binoculars, general terry ordered in more troops, another brigade would go in,. Third brigade, Second Division, 24th army corps, it was known as bills brigade. It was composed of troops from indiana, New Hampshire, new york, and was commanded by 27 year old colonel lewis bill. Son of a New Hampshire governor, bell it was a graduate of brown university, and its civilian life, he was an attorney, prop security, an amateur scientist, a devoted husband and father, a combat veteran and Brigade Commander. The troops of the third brigade, bells brigade, quickly moved forward to join the battle on the forts towering land face will. Just as the brigades assault began, however, colonel belt took a Sharp Shooters round through the body, and fell mortally wounded. His troops obediently kept going anyway, rushing past their fallen colonel, spilling into the fort, scaling its height earth and walls, adding their strength to the federal troops already inside. From his position inside the fort, colonel lamb could see more men in blue pouring into his fort fighting his troops atop the batteries and in the forts interior. Despite their superior numbers to federal troops seem to hesitate under the fierce fire unleashed by the fourth thin line of defenders. If they were struck hard now, lamb reckoned, maybe the enemy soldiers would fold up and retreat in a panic like the sailors had done, im ordered the troops around to rise and charge in a desperate counterattack, they obeyed, but as they arose with fixed bayonets, colonel land was hit. It was a serious wound, lamb awestruck by federal a 58 caliber lead bullet, it hit his left hip, fractured is hit bone and knocked him flat. When the troops around him saw him go down, they faltered. That ended the counterattack. Lamb was carried off to the forts Field Hospital to join general waiting but like bills and penny packers northern soldiers the north carolinians defending fort fisher would not give up despite the command void left by the absence of waiting and lamb. They kept fighting. Giving ground stubbornly, slowly being pushed back from one land faced battery to another. Giving up ground at a bloody cost to the Northern Army. Command of fort fishers defends now went to lamb surviving subordinate, major james riley. There was little that he could do. It was now a soldiers fight, face to face, hand to hand, on top of the forceful and face walls. The northern troops had a definite numerical advantage, but on the walls of this fort, in such close quarters with soldiers on both sides crammed, shoulder to shoulder, against each other Numerical Strength did not matter the forts defenders were giving ground very gradually and they were defending North Carolina soil, their homes and families and despite their lack of experience they fought as hard and could fight that day. It was later said to be by both sides some of the bitterest hand to hand fighting of the war. A soldier would be shot in the head by a rifle bowl, a survivor later recollected, there was no outcry, simply a spurned blood and it was all over, and agonizing clamor came from the wounded man who were writing in the sand, the dead lay face downwards, their faces in the sand and others who have been near each other when shell exploded had fallen and heap of broken limbs and mangled bodies. Men unable to stand and fire their pieces handed off the guns of their dead and helpless comrades and reload them again and again. At dusk, however, the federal advance appeared to style again. About midway down the forts land face, colonel curtis leading the fight of one of his troops sent a career hustling to the rear with a request for more reinforcements. Instead of reinforcements, however, he received orders to intrench, to dig in on the forts earth wall and wait for morning. The order came from Brigadier General aims, the Division Commander in criticism mediate superior. Aims was a west pointer, had a lot of combat experience, a resume military honors. He loathed colonel curtis. Aims and curtis for engaged in a personal feud during the fort fisher campaign. Ames had made his headquarters aboard the troop ship that curtis commanded, but when the ships were ordered to set sail from virginia, aims was a general butlers headquarters, working the generals daughter. After a long wait, curtis ordered the troop ship to sail anyway, without a superior officer, and what aims caught up with the expedition after hitting a raid on the hospital ship, he and curtis had a heated argument in front of the troops. By the time they went into battle, they were not speaking to each other. So, in the midst of the bloody fighting on the land faced at dusk, curtis repeatedly requested reinforcements. General aims repeatedly ordered in the stop of the fight to dig in for the night. Curtis refused to obey. Confederates were about to break, he argued. Aims finally sent a career with an arm load of spades up to the front. Up to the top of a battery, where the fight was raging, in the midst of the shouts and blood and the death, this career appeared and presented his armload of shovels to curtis. Infuriated, curtis angrily through the spades over the crest of the battery on to the confederates on the other side. I always wondered what did they think . It is raining shovels. The are the Northern Forces out of bullets . But curtis kept fighting, then minutes later exploding artillery shield which took out whens eyes and knocked him unconscious and forced his shot soldiers to drag him to the rear. Now general theory had to make the crucial decision. It was almost nighttime. He had put in three big april gates into the fort. His troops have been fighting for hours, all three of his Brigade Commanders were dead or wounded. The federal advance seemed stalled. His Division Commander wanted to stop fighting in the trench for the night. Terry was at a Pivotal Point in the battle. Should he stop . Set up for siege . Or should he risk more loss of life and push on . He chose to keep fighting, ignoring general lanes call to begin an order more reinforcements. Charging into the fort now theories order was a fourth brigade. Troops from New Hampshire and connecticut commanded by jones and see abbott and adding to those numbers thierry called for the u. S. Govern troops of the 25th army corps. For the First Time Since federal forces had moved against fort fisher troops who are now heading for the front. Federal reinforcement poured into the fort and the momentum shifted to the men in blue many of the federal troops were fresh snow, and the forts defender were far few in number and nearing exhaustion. Still, the fighting was bitter and bloody. There was scold steele with the butt of a gun. An officer would remember. Men would blaze away in the darkness, voices were shouting orders to friend and fellow who could then now and then be seen by the flash of exploding shells or the blaze of musky tree. But the forts surviving defenders were exhausted, almost out of ammunition. The forts chaplain had been collecting cartridges from the dead and supplying those still fighting but it was not enough. Ford fishers garrison had fought stubbornly, courageously, these men from North Carolina, but now their fight was nearing an end. The breakthrough for the Northern Army came when fresh troops from the seventh New Hampshire moved through the darkness along the base of the fort land face, flanking the forts remaining defenders and rushed over the for wall and opened fire on the southerners from the rear. Surrounded now by a host of blue uniforms, for fishers surviving defenders finally gave up. After six hours a ferocious fightings, all resistance collapsed and the federal army of the james health fort fisher from one river to the ocean. General whiting and colonel lam was lying side by side with the forts battle winded. Whiting looked up and saw an officer in a blue uniform standing over him and looking down at him. It was general terry. Now the victor the battle of fort fisher. General whiting was the right king southern officer, spoke words that what seemed unthinkable to him. I surrender sir to you, the forces under my command. Fort fisher had fallen. Wilmington was sealed. The confederacy had lost its last major seaport. The top four finishers blood soaked ramparts, the victorious northern troops cheered, jumped, hugged each other in a wild celebration as the naval fleet blew its whistles and set off fireworks. Victory for the northern soldiers. We proclaimed it to from sea and shore, wilder and heartier sheer ever before. My very heart went up and thanksgiving. Men clasp each other and wept only as brave men can in the our victory. When don came to fort fisher on january 16th it revealed a dramatically different post. Don was in confederate iran, replaced by northern troops in blue uniforms. The forts mighty line of heavier till early was wrecked. Guns battered, broken, dismounted. And there are two, was horrible evidence of the battles fury and obstruction of the naval bombardment. Scarcely a square foot of ground without some fragment of an explosive unexploded shell reported a northern soldier. Heavy guns burst it other knocked in pieces. That bodies of rebels lying where they fill the sum with heads off, some caught into, some disemboweled, every possible wound that could be inflicted on this terrible war. And what was the result of the northern victory of the battle of four fishery . Confederate officials regarded the loss of fort fisher as a stunning blow. Alexander stevens, confederate Vice President , pronounced that one of the greatest of the last of greatest disasters took all the south since the beginning of the war. Faced with the loss of wilmington the major seaport, confederate secretary resigned from his office. Some congressmen called on davis to step down in favor of robert e. Lee as dictator. The fall of fort fisher convinced other Confederate Congressmans that the south to finally make terms with the north. A few weeks later after the fall of fort fisher, president lincoln and u. S. Secretary of state met with the confederate peace commission. But the meeting achieved nothing. President davis said, president lincoln was unwilling to compromise because the south had lost its major fort. With the capture of fort fisher in the port of wilmington, the confederacy was isolated from the rest of the world. There were no other major ports opened to the south, and small ones could do nothing to replace wilmington the lifeline of the confederacy had been severed forever. No more imported weapons of war would be ruling off the railway from wilmington to these armies in Northern Virginia. To many, north and south it appeared that one of the final nails that have driven into the confederate coffin indeed robert e. Lee surrendered it would come less than three months later. Thank you. applause any questions . yes sir. A long time ago i read somewhere that butler and porter, especially porter, had a great animosity for butler. So much so that he ordered his navy on the first assault to shoot poorly an aim on the river. Is there anything that supports that in the Current Research . I have never seen any evidence of that but i will say that the relationship between the two was strained because of a lot of things. Butler actually invited porter to his headquarter ship. Butler had a blockade runner, porter had the uss melbourne. A nice ship for the fleet and any admirable. But when he went aboard butlers headquarters boat, he was really amazed at the opulence, and probably not happy about it. While he was there he commented that the security was terrible, and then a bomb went off when they were meeting. Something they thought was the lined designed to look like a piece of coal and tossed into the bowler boiler, so they had to evacuate the ship. It sank. A lot of bad blood. Could not have picked to people who were so many different and so many ways. I had never heard that but, i find it hard to believe that porter would do that. He really was a sailors sailor. He was controversial in his own way. He would be willing to trap down any officer, any friend to advance his career but he did love the navy. I would not believe that without seeing some evidence. But it does bring us to the thought about the relationship between the two of those. Yes sir . What was the response the next morning and all of a sudden they won the next morning . That is a great question. And instead not say much. Aims had distinguishing himself at gettysburg it was an excellent field officer. But the whole few feud thing with them went on and on. He wrote his after action report, and you would have thought that aims won the battle, and then years later, years later the Veterans Group in new york city was meeting at del monicas restaurant, and it was announced in advance like we are doing here, they would make presentations on different topics. It was announced that aims would speak on the battle of fort fishers in the eighties. They were elderly by then. Aims came and stood and delivered this general theory had recently died. He had ended up ended up being one of the rare volunteer officers who kept his ranks and state in the regular army. Little big horn, distinguished career after the war. Not long after he died, aims asked to make this presentation. In it critics said, he took credit for the fort fisher, and according to critics, their interpretation was that he really told thierry what to do and that is why the things worked out the way they did. Sitting in the audience was colonel curtis. One eye, who had distinguished himself in the post war career, political leadership, writing books, and a fierce defender of general terry, and what had happened at fort fisher. He knew that aims was there, so in the middle of aims speech, where he reached a point where curtis thought he was really claiming that he had been responsible for the victory according to the new york times, curtis stood up and clenched his fist and glared with his eye and said you you craven hearted coward. Then everything fell apart. That was great for me, because, what happened was, adrian terri general terrys brother was also angry. He sent a letter to everybody he knew and trusted, right me your account of fort fisher, he never did the thanks to him i did. I am really grateful for that collection of work that he did. They did not think any of that would be published and they were so frank that all these details kind of poured out about what was going. On thank you for. That yes sir . Oh im sorry back here mom . You said recalled hope, was there any conflict there between those two . I know hawk went on to fight, would happen to brag . I think everybody generally agrees that hawk was a competent officer and he followed orders as he was told to. Your question was what happened to brag . More scorn. He ended up with resident davis till the very end on the president s trail from richmond bragg was with him for a long time. Somebody asked me one time can you tell us something good that bragg did . I dont pick on general brag but i just reported on what was written. But he did create a really nice rich after the war. I will add to that, that when this book came out in 1991, i was in a Grocery Store or not far from my home and i was pushing my shopping cart with seven kids. This very nice lady came walking by, i did not know her and she looked at me and said, mister bragg you wrote that book on fort fisher . You said bad things about general bragg. Maam . She said he was my ancestor. I was afraid to go to the Grocery Store for weeks. Another question . Yes, regarding the over fine uniform. I heard a different story. I have heard that when lamb and waiting in the initial firing of the shelves they noticed they were firing on the flag of confederacy and they moved the flag back to the river and by that means more than half of the shells ended up in the river and therefore minimized the damage. Is that the right story . I do not know. Never heard that they moved it. It would surprise me that that was the right thing to do, but it is true. Reports said that the sailors were undisciplined and the sliders, and they got into a contest trying to knock down the garrison flag, and they overshot the fort. Mid 20th century, shrimp boat captains were complaining because their nets were picking up hundred pound shots through the river. That part did happen. I just dont know if they moved the flag i need to find out about. That thank you. Anyone else . Youve been a great group thank you so much. applause