Across The Fence: Battle of Valverde and The Texas Lancers

From the first shot fired upon the Union ship "Star of the West" at Fort Sumter, to the last shot fired from the Confederate warship the "CSS Shenandoah" near the Aleutian Islands, nearly 700,000 Union and Confederate soldiers would lay buried on or near the hundreds of battlefields from the banks of the Missouri to the eastern seaboard.

Gettysburg, Chancellorsville, Fredericksburg, Bull Run, Manassas and scores more sound familiar to most who are scholars of the Civil War battles. But for every major battle there were perhaps a dozen minor skirmishes that claimed far fewer casualties but were no less fiercely fought. The Battle of Valverde is one of those.

In the early days of conflict in 1861, Col. John R. Baylor was given command of the Second Texas Rifles and ordered to occupy a chain of U.S. Army posts that had been built along the southwestern territories as protection against the marauding Comanche and Apache. However, the colonel was less interested in fighting Indians than he was possessed with the notion of invading and occupying southern New Mexico and Arizona, raising the Confederate flag above their capitols then pushing westward to California. Col. Baylor was given that opportunity when Confederate President Jefferson Davis issued orders to do just that. By August 1861, Col. Baylor had routed Union forces across southern New Mexico and Arizona and had issued a proclamation establishing himself as Governor of the Confederate Territory of Arizona and New Mexico.

With the territories under the domain of the Confederacy, the federal government was compelled to move the Butterfield stage route further north, abandoning the route through Texas and Arizona and establishing an alternate route through Nebraska and Utah then on to California.

With Col. Baylor's relatively easy occupation of southern New Mexico, Maj. Henry Hopkins Sibley convinced President Davis that he could now invade northern New Mexico, take control of Santa Fe and occupy the valley of the Rio Grande. Once a foothold was established there he would defeat the weak Colorado Militia, seize control of Denver and the nearby gold fields then marching westward, he would establish Confederate dominion over the territories from the Rockies to the Pacific. President Davis approved Sibley's plan and commissioned him a Brigadier General. However, President Davis also informed Brigadier Gen. Sibley that the Confederate government would not be able to provide money, supplies or troops.

Undaunted and determined, by February 1862 Gen. Sibley had assembled a fighting force of three mounted regiments, one mounted battalion and one provisional artillery battalion a total of 2,590 ill-equipped and meagerly provisioned men. Each man had to supply his own horse and arms. There were very few rifles among them and most carried shotguns, pistols and knives. Gen. Sibley's plan was to march north following the Rio Grande and capture Fort Craig, Santa Fe and then Fort Union.

On Feb. 13, 1862, Gen. Sibley approached the formidable stone walls of Fort Craig. Under the command of Colonel Edward Canby, Fort Craig garrisoned 3,800 men consisting of seven companies of Regular Cavalry, eight companies of Regular Infantry, one company of Colorado volunteers, five regiments of New Mexico volunteers, two regiments of Militia and an Artillery Battalion. Col. Canby had been aware of Sibley's approach and had placed several "Quaker guns" at strategic locations along the fort's ramparts. Quaker guns were pine logs fashioned to appear as canon and give an impression of being more heavily armed than actual.

Having no intelligence of Col. Canby's strength and not eager to launch a full scale assault, Gen. Sibley's troops made camp a few hundred yards from the fort hoping to draw out Canby's troops for battle. For five days, Sibley's troops camped and Canby's troops waited.

With already meager rations running low, Sibley decided to bypass Fort Craig by retreating along the Rio Grande to a point about seven miles south where they could cross the river near the Village of Paraje. Crossing to the east bank they then marched past the fort and on to the Valverde ford where they could intercept and confiscate the freight wagons coming from the north to resupply the fort.

Union scouts observed the maneuvers of Sibley's troops and Canby, suspecting they were heading to the Valverde ford, dispatched a force of cavalry, infantry and artillery to the opposite bank of the river. Canby's troops reached the river and set up an offensive position while Sibley's troops had made camp for the night, intending to reach the ford at daybreak. During the night Union troops loaded pack mules with kegs of fused gunpowder, lit the fuses and drove the pack mules into the Confederate pickets. While the only casualties were the mules, the explosions spooked the Confederate livestock, horses and cattle, and drove them into the Union lines, reducing the already scant provisions and needed horses of the Confederate troops.

The following morning, February 20, when Sibley's Confederate troops reached the east bank of the river, Canby's Union troops were positioned and ready on the west and the battle began. Canby's troops opened with heavy rifle fire across the ford with deadly effect. Sibley's men, armed with shotguns and pistols were unable to return effective fire, being out of range with their small arms. Falling back, the Confederate troops took cover in the sand hills beyond the river. Canby called in most of all of the troops that had been left at the fort and the entire force of cavalry, infantry and artillery crossed the ford and set up battle lines. Sibley reinforced his lines with the 5th and 7th Mounted Texas Rifle Regiments while Canby's artillery bombarded the Confederate positions with grapeshot.

The Union troops were quickly gaining the upper hand in the battle. Unable to counter the superior firepower of the Union forces Gen. Sibley's troopers hunkered down as best they could in the protection of a nearby dry riverbed.

Col. Canby deployed the Union troops in a skirmish line rather than pressing his advantage with a full assault and rout of the Texas volunteers. Though most of the Texas boys carried shotguns and pistols there were those who were armed with rifles and in the hands of sharpshooters and snipers were used with considerable success. As the morning wore on the battle intensified with all companies, regiments and artillery fully engaged.

The Union troops stood between Gen. Sibley's men and the river and by early afternoon men and horses of the Texas Mounted Regiments were suffering for lack of water. At this point in the battle Gen. Sibley relinquished command to Colonel Thomas Green of the Texas 5th and retired to the regimental ambulance. Perhaps he had taken ill but most believe he was characteristically drunk.

In an effort to turn the course of battle Col. Green called on Capt. Willis L. Lang of Company B to mount a full out attack on the Union's right flank. Company B was unique in all of the Texas Mounted Regiments in that they were a Company of Lancers. Why Col. Greene believed that a company of Lancers could defeat a skirmish line of riflemen and artillery is unknown, but Capt. Lang dutifully mustered his Lancers and prepared for the assault.

It was early afternoon when Captain Lang lined out the mounted Lancers and began the slow trot toward the enemy. With lances pointed toward the heavens the lancers gazed steadily ahead as Capt. Lang spurred his mount and cantered to the lead, positioning himself front and center of the hoof-pounding wall of horses and men. At the Captain's command the company moved from canter to gallop as lances were lowered, and with the familiar rallying call of the "rebel yell" the charge was on. This was the one and only Lancer charge of the entire Civil War.

A company of Colorado volunteers who had been mustered out of Denver held the Union's right flank. Showing incredible restraint, the men held their fire until the Company of Lancers were no further than a few short yards from the muzzles of their rifles.

"Give 'em hell!" Capt. Theodore H. Dodd yelled to his Colorado volunteers and the air filled with the explosions of gunpowder and clouds of smoke. The first wave of Lancers fell under the onslaught of whistling lead. Men and horses crumpled in bloody heaps as the second wave slammed into the next volley of smoke and lead, but still the Lancers charged. The Lancers faced the deadly fire of the Union line until only three of the 50 Lancers of Company B remained.

Capt. Lang was wounded in the first wave of the Lancers charge. His second in command, Lt. Demetrius M. Bass died a few days later from the wounds of seven musket balls. Capt. Lang lived for a short while, his wounds so numerous and painful that he knew he would not recover. After several days of excruciating, pain he asked his manservant to bring him his pistol and ended his suffering by his own hand.

M. Timothy Nolting is an award-winning Nebraska columnist and freelance writer. Reach him via email at

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