A minor Union cavalry raid on Springfield, Missouri, that briefly captured the town but produced no lasting strategic gain in the Trans-Mississippi Theater.
Key Facts
- Date
- October 25, 1861
- Union force commander
- Major Charles Zagonyi
- Confederate force commander
- Colonel Julian Frazier
- Missouri State Guard recruits
- Approximately 1,000–1,500 troops
- Union troops held Springfield
- Approximately 2 days before withdrawing
- Frémont relieved of command
- Early November 1861
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
After the Missouri State Guard's victory at the Siege of Lexington, Union Major General John C. Frémont launched a campaign pushing into southern Missouri. The Guard's main body retreated to Neosho, leaving roughly 1,000–1,500 new recruits under Colonel Julian Frazier at Springfield. Frémont dispatched Major Charles Zagonyi's bodyguard unit on a scouting mission toward the town on October 24, 1861.
On October 25, 1861, after losing the element of surprise in a skirmish with Missouri State Guardsmen, Zagonyi detoured west and attacked Frazier's defensive position on a wooded ridge near Springfield at around 4:00 p.m. His men drove off the Guard and briefly occupied Springfield before withdrawing northward at nightfall. Zagonyi's post-battle report exaggerated his own troops' role and minimized the Prairie Scouts' contributions.
Union forces reoccupied Springfield two days later, but the action produced little strategic benefit. Frémont was relieved of command in early November 1861, and his successor abandoned the campaign. This withdrawal allowed the Missouri State Guard to reoccupy Springfield, though they were ultimately driven out of Missouri in early 1862.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Major Charles Zagonyi, Major General John C. Frémont (overall).
Side B
1 belligerent
Colonel Julian Frazier.