A Confederate Missouri State Guard victory that briefly secured control of the Missouri River Valley and reinforced Southern sentiment in western Missouri.
Key Facts
- Date range
- September 13–20, 1861
- Duration
- 8 days days
- Theater
- Trans-Mississippi Theater
- Location
- Lexington, Lafayette County, Missouri
- Outcome
- Missouri State Guard (Confederate) victory
- Also known as
- First Battle of Lexington; Battle of the Hemp Bales
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
In the summer of 1861, Missouri was bitterly divided between Union and Confederate sympathizers. Pro-Confederate Missouri State Guard forces under state authority sought to contest Union control of key strategic positions along the Missouri River, including the town of Lexington, the Lafayette County seat, which held both symbolic and logistical importance in the western part of the state.
From September 13 to 20, 1861, Missouri State Guard forces besieged the Union Army garrison at Lexington, Missouri. The engagement, sometimes called the Battle of the Hemp Bales for the use of hemp bales as mobile cover, lasted eight days before the Union defenders were compelled to yield to the Confederate state forces.
The Missouri State Guard's victory bolstered Southern sentiment considerably in the region and temporarily consolidated Confederate state control over the Missouri River Valley in western Missouri. However, the gains were short-lived, as Union forces subsequently reasserted their dominance across much of the state during the broader Civil War campaign.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Side B
1 belligerent